On June 21, 2016, invited by Prof. WANG Jin-hui, Ru-Rong Ji, Ph.D., visited IBP and delivered the BEI Shizhang Lecture.

Ru-Rong Ji, Ph.D., is a distinguished Professor in Dept. of Anesthesiology and Neurobiology of Duke University Medical Center and serves as Chief of Pain Research in the Department of Anesthesiology. He previously was an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School, before joining the Duke faculty in 2012. His research focuses on molecular and cellular mechanisms of chronic pain, such as inflammatory pain, neuropathic pain, and cancer pain.

Prof. Ru-Rong Ji delivered the BEI Shizhang Lecture entitled “miRNAs as extracellular signal molecules for pain”. He presented his recent findings: Let-7b is sufficient to elicit robust pain behaviors. TLR7 is expressed in nociceptive neurons. Activation of TLR7 increases the excitability of nociceptors. Let-7b is secreted following tissue injury or neuronal activation. Let-7b inhibitor can reduce inflammatory pain.

The audience posed many interesting questions after the lecture, which was about the mechanisms of pain.