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 70 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.

Recent Publications

  • Giselle Kaneda, Dave Huang, Nathalie Pham, Alfonso R. Gonzalez, Wafa Tawackoli, Seunghwan Lee, Miyako Suzuki, Trevor J. Nelson, Juliane D. Glaeser, Magali Millecamps, Laura S. Stone, Dmitriy Sheyn, Melodie F. Metzger. Exercise improves load bearing bone structural properties in female secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) null mice but not in males. J Orthop Res. 2024. doi: 10.1002/jor.25950. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39105654/
  • Jiang W, Glaeser JD, Kaneda G, Sheyn J, Wechsler JT, Stephan S, Salehi K, Chan JL, Tawackoli W, Avalos P, Johnson C, Castaneda C, Kanim LEA, Tanasansomboon T, Burda JE, Shelest O, Yameen H, Perry TG, Kropf M, Cuellar JM, Seliktar D, Bae HW, Stone LS, Sheyn D. Intervertebral disc human nucleus pulposus cells associated with back pain trigger neurite outgrowth in vitro and pain behaviors in rats. Sci Transl Med. 2023 Dec 6;15(725):eadg7020. doi: 10.1126/scitranslmed.adg7020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38055799
  • André Bussières, Mark J. Hancock, Ask Elklit, Manuela L. Ferreira, Paulo H. Ferreira, Laura S. Stone, Timothy H. Wideman, Jill T. Boruff, Fadi Al Zoubi, Fauzia Chaudhry, Raymond Tolentino & Jan Hartvigsen; Adverse childhood experience is associated with an increased risk of reporting chronic pain in adulthood: a systematic review and meta-analysis. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 2023, Vol 14, No. 2, 2284025 https://doi.org/10.1080/20008066.2023.2284025
  • Magali Millecamps, Susana G Sotocinal, Jean-Sebastien Austin, Laura S Stone, Jeffrey S Mogil; “Sex-specific effects of neuropathic pain on long-term pain behavior and mortality in mice”. Pain, 2022 Jul 29. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35916733/
  • Hugo Massé-Alarie; Adriana Angarita-Fonseca; Anaïs Lacasse; M. Gabrielle Pagé; Pascal Tétreault; Maryse Fortin; Guillaume Léonard; Laura S Stone; Jean-Sébastien Roy; “Low back pain definitions: effect on patient inclusion and clinical profiles” Pain Reports, 2022 Mar 22;7(2):e997. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35356510
  • Stephanie Gregoire, David Cheishvili, Mali Salmon-Divon, Sergiy Dymov, Lucas Topham, Virginie Calderon, Yoram Shir, Moshe Szyf, Laura S. Stone; “Epigenetic signature of chronic low back pain in human T cells”, Pain Reports, 2021 Nov 3;6(4):e960. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34746619
  • Yuya Kawarai, Seon Ho Jang, Seunghwan Lee, Magali Millecamps, HyungMo Kang, Miyako Suzuki-Narita, Stephanie Gregoire, Seiji Ohtori, Laura S Stone; “Exercise attenuates low back pain and alters epigenetic regulation in intervertebral discs in a mouse model” The Spine Journal, 2021 Jun 9, S1529-9430(21)00723-3. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34116218
  • Magali Millecamps, Seunghwan Lee, Daniel Z. Foster, Laura S. Stone; Disc degeneration spreads: Long-term behavioral, histologic and radiologic consequences of a single-level disc injury in active and sedentary mice. Eur Spine Journal, 2021 Aug; 30(8):2238-2246. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34216236
  • Lucas Topham, Stephanie Gregoire, HyungMo Kang, Mali Salmon-Divon, Elad Lax, Magali Millecamps, Moshe Szyf, Laura S Stone; “The transition from acute to chronic pain: dynamic epigenetic reprogramming of the mouse prefrontal cortex up to one year following nerve injury” Pain, 161(10):2394-2409,Oct 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32427748/
  • Magali Millecamps, Xiang Q Shi, Marjo H Piltonen, Stefania Echeverry, Luda Diatchenko, Ji Zhang, Laura S Stone; The geriatric pain experience in mice: intact cutaneous thresholds but altered behavioural responses to tonic and chronic pain. Neurobio. of Aging,89:1-11 2020. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32008855
Funding

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-Investigators).

2019-2021: NIH (National Institutes of Health; USA) (Subaward on 1R21NS113335) – "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).

Contact
Laura Stone photo

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.

MAPL Website

Recent Publications

  • Aghabeigi, S., Bush, N., Boissoneault, J. (2024). Determinants of perceived pain relief from acute alcohol intake in a laboratory setting. DRUG AND ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE REPORTS, 12. doi: 10.1016/j.dadr.2024.100267
  • Bush, N. J., Ferguson, E., Zale, E., Boissoneault, J. (2024). A brief screening tool for self-medication of pain with substance use. Journal of Addiction Medicine, 18(3), 282-287. doi: 10.1097/ADM.0000000000001289
  • Bush, N. J., Cushnie, A. K., Sinclair, M. S., Ahmed, H., Schorn, R., Xie, T., Boissoneault, J. (2024). Development of an accelerometer-based wearable sensor approach for alcohol consumption detection. Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research. doi: 10.1111/acer.15465
  • Blaes, S., Lewis, B., Teitelbaum, S., Reisfeld, G., Boissoneault, J. (2024). Associations Between Smoking and Pain in Early Recovery in Residential Treatment Seekers. Journal of Substance Use and Addiction Treatment, 160, 209311. doi: 10.1016/j.josat.2024.209311
  • Farrior, H. , Teitelbaum, S., Phalin, B., Janner, A., Solomon, L., Hunt, J., Mathias, K., Boissoneault, J., Lewis, B. (2024). Pain Predicts Dropout from Substance Use Treatment. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 85(3), 381-388. doi: 10.15288/jsad.23-00099
  • Mauro, G. D., Sevel, L. S., Boissoneault, J., Wang, Z. (Lead Author) (2024). Divergent association between pain intensity and resting-state fMRI-based brain entropy in different age groups. Journal of Neuroscience Research, 102(5), e25341. doi: 10.1002/jnr.25341
  • Stennett-Blackmon, B.A., Sevel, L., Boissoneault, J. (2023). Association of cerebellar and pre-motor cortex gray matter density with subjective intoxication and subjective response following acute alcohol intake. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, 13(1). doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-34546-5
  • Ferguson, E., Fiore, A., Yurasek, A. M., Cook, R. L., Boissoneault, J. (2023). Association of Therapeutic and Recreational Reasons for Alcohol Use With Alcohol Demand. EXPERIMENTAL AND CLINICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY, 31(1), 106-115. doi: 10.1037/pha0000554
  • Schneider, II, V. J., Bush, N. J., Robinson, M., Boissoneault, J. (2023). Effect of typical alcohol use and expectancies on the social manipulation of drinking behavior in a virtual bar pilot study. Drug and alcohol dependence, 253, 111021. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2023.111021
  • Alexander, C., Bush, N. J., Neubert, J. K., Robinson, M., Boissoneault, J. (2023). Expectancy of Alcohol Analgesia Moderates Perception of Pain Relief Following Acute Alcohol Intake. EXPERIMENTAL AND CLINICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY. doi: 10.1037/pha0000664
Contact
Jeff Boissoneault

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