Basic Science Research
Stone Lab
Dr. Laura Stone received her PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Minnesota, completed post-doctoral training at the Oregon Health and Sciences University and was on the faculty at McGill University from 2007-2020. Dr. Stone returned to the University of Minnesota to join the Department of Anesthesiology in June 2020. She is an inventor on 7 patents and has co-authored over 100 manuscripts.
Current research projects within the Stone Lab utilize both pre-clinical models and patient populations to investigate the mechanisms underlying low back and musculoskeletal pain, the optimization of pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments and the epigenetic regulation of chronic pain.
Cholewicki J, Hodges PW, Popovich JM Jr, et al. A meta-model of low back pain to examine collective expert knowledge of treatment effects and their mechanisms. Eur Spine J. Published online May 19, 2026. doi:10.1007/s00586-026-09932-y
Ghazizadeh S, Cherif H, Mannarino M, et al. Senolytic therapy as a preventive strategy for spine degeneration and pain. Adv Sci (Weinh). Published online May 25, 2026:e22770. doi:10.1002/advs.202522770
Rought R, Rodrigues R, Sharif-Naeini R, et al. A new and less invasive surgical approach to the mouse spared nerve injury model of peripheral neuropathic pain. J Neurosci Methods. 2026;431:110751. doi:10.1016/j.jneumeth.2026.110751
Venkatachala Babu J, Puvanesarajah V, Mesfin A, et al. TRPC6-mediated Ca2+ influx activates MAPK and NFκB signaling and elicits pro-inflammatory and catabolic responses in human intervertebral disc cells. Cells. 2026;15(6):534. doi:10.3390/cells15060534
Pruinelli L, Mathiason MA, Ma S, et al. Age differences in patients with postoperative pain and their relationships to comorbid conditions: multivariate logistic regression analysis. AANA J. 2025;93(5):331-337. doi:10.70278/AANAJ/.0000001024
Schorn R, Riedl M, Stone LS, Lee AM, Vulchanova L. Chronic alcohol drinking delays recovery from capsaicin- and nerve injury-induced hypersensitivity in mice. Alcohol. 2025;129:123-133. doi:10.1016/j.alcohol.2025.10.001
Osagie RO, Tufa I, Angarita-Fonseca A, et al. Impact of different acute low back pain definitions on the predictors and on the risk of transition to chronic low back pain: a prospective longitudinal cohort study. Pain. 2025;166(11):e577-e589. doi:10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003669
Roberts JB, Rockel JS, Mulders R, et al. From mechanism to medicine: the progress and potential of epigenetics in osteoarthritis. Osteoarthr Cartil Open. 2025;7(3):100621. doi:10.1016/j.ocarto.2025.100621
2025-2027: NIH (National Institutes of Health) R21 Grant – "Sex-dependent Functions of Spinal Dopamine 1 Receptors in Neuropathic Pain" (Role: Co-Investigator).
2024-2029: NIH (National Institutes of Health) R01 Grant – "Epigenetic Drivers of Chronic Low Back Pain" (Role: Principle Investigator).
2024-2026: NIAMS (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases) R61 Grant – "Development and Validation of a Mouse Model of Intervertebral Disc Degeneration-Induced Low Back Pain to Facilitate Non-Addictive Analgesic Discovery" (Role: Principle Investigator).
2020-2025: CIHR (Canadian Institutes for Health Research) Project Grant – "Chronotherapy of Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs could enhance bone fracture recovery" (Role: Co-Principle Investigator).
2020-2025: US Department of Defense - Chronic Pain Management Research Program – "Understanding Acute to Chronic Back Pain Pathways and Testing New Solutions" (Role: Co-Investigator).
2019-2021: NIH (National Institutes of Health) R21 Grant – "Targeting the VFG signaling system for new chronic pain treatments" (Role: Co-Investigators).
2016-2021: CIHR (Canadian Institutes for Health Research) Project Grant 362909 – "Epigenetic Mechanisms in Chronic Pain" (Role: Principle Investigator).
2015-2020: CIHR (Canadian Institutes for Health Research) Operating Grant MOP-142291- "Low back pain: from mechanism to therapeutic intervention" (Role: Principle Investigator).
Dr. Laura Stone
[email protected]
Profile
Office/Lab Address
Jackson Hall 4-145
321 Church St SE,
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Campus Mailing Address
Anesthesiology Administration
420 Delaware Street SEMMC 294
Minneapolis, MN 44544
Minnesota Alcohol and Pain Lab
Dr. Jeff Boissoneault serves as an Associate Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Minnesota, where he directs the Minnesota Alcohol and Pain Lab (MAPL). He received his doctorate in medical sciences with a concentration in cognitive/behavioral neuroscience from the University of Florida and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in pain research in the University of Florida’s Pain Research and Intervention Center of Excellence.
Dr. Boissoneault’s research interests focus on neurophysiological and psychosocial mechanisms underling the bidirectional association between pain and substance use, especially alcohol. He is also actively involved in studies regarding cortical-brainstem-spinal interactions underlying placebo analgesia and non-pharmacologic approaches to improve pain modulatory capacity in people with chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain.
Cushnie AK, Sevel LS, Bush NJ, Nixon SJ, Robinson ME, Boissoneault J. Effects of acute alcohol on pain-related activity of the anterior and posterior insular cortices. Alcohol. Published online May 25, 2026. doi:10.1016/j.alcohol.2026.05.003
Dallery J, Miller JL, Boissoneault J, et al. An open-label pilot study of psilocybin-assisted therapy for binge eating disorder. J Eat Disord. 2026;14(1):41. doi:10.1186/s40337-025-01508-3
Bush NJ, Ferguson E, Funez-Ponce M, Yurasek A, Boissoneault J. Clinical pain intensity is associated with greater cannabis demand among people who regularly use cannabis. Pain Rep. 2026;11(1):e1385. doi:10.1097/PR9.0000000000001385
Boissoneault J. Alcohol use and pain: novel insights and emerging questions. Alcohol. 2026;130:73-75. doi:10.1016/j.alcohol.2025.12.001
Biessenberger LA, Cushnie AK, Stennett-Blackmon B, et al. Acute alcohol intake disrupts resting state network topology in healthy social drinkers. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2026;278:112972. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2025.112972
Nixon SJ, Torres SA, Boissoneault J, Garcia CC, Lewis B. Neurobehavioral concomitants of alcohol use in older healthy adults. Front Hum Neurosci. 2025;19:1693330. doi:10.3389/fnhum.2025.1693330
Sevel L, Stennett-Blackmon B, Nixon SJ, Robinson M, Boissoneault J. Sex-dependent effects of alcohol intake on pain-related functional activation. Alcohol Clin Exp Res (Hoboken). 2026;50(1):e70202. doi:10.1111/acer.70202
Boissoneault J, Bush N, Stroman P, Staud R, Robinson M. Cortico-midbrain-spinal mechanisms underlying placebo analgesia. J Pain. 2026;38:105591. doi:10.1016/j.jpain.2025.105591
Dr. Jeff Boissoneault
[email protected]
Profile
Office/Lab Address
B515 Mayo Memorial Building
420 Delaware St SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Campus Mailing Address
Anesthesiology Administration
420 Delaware Street SEMMC 294
Minneapolis, MN 44544