Frank Porreca, PhD

Associate Department Head, Pharmacology

Member of the Graduate Faculty

Professor, Anesthesiology

Professor, Cancer Biology - GIDP

Professor, Neuroscience - GIDP

Professor, Pharmacology

562

(520) 626-7421

frankp@arizona.edu

Documents

Frank-Porreca-CV

Dr. Frank Porreca is the Cosden Professor of Pain and Addiction Studies in the Departments of Pharmacology and Anesthesiology at the University of Arizona. His research focuses on understanding brain circuits that promote pain, migraine, post-traumatic headache, and the overlap of these circuits with opioid addiction.

His work has explored central modulation of pain, the motivational dimension of pain, the reward of pain relief, and how stress and opioids modulate pain. His recent research has focused on sexually dimorphic mechanisms that promote female pain conditions, including headache disorders and female-specific pelvic pain.

Dr. Porreca is Director of the Center of Excellence in Addiction Studies and Scientific Director of the Comprehensive Pain and Addiction Center. He has published more than 600 peer-reviewed papers and is one of the most highly cited pharmacologists worldwide.

Degrees

B.S., General Science Honors, Villanova University, Villanova, PA
M.S., Biomedical Engineering, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA
Ph.D., Pharmacology, Temple University, School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA
Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ

Work Experience

Cosden Professor of Pain and Addiction Studies, University of Arizona
Associate Department Head, Department of Pharmacology, University of Arizona
Director, Center of Excellence in Addiction Studies
Scientific Director, Comprehensive Pain and Addiction Center

Awards

Ronald Melzack Award, International Association for the Study of Pain
Patrick Wall Award, British Pain Society
Mary Ellen Jeans Award, Canadian Pain Society
Sunderland Award, Australian Pain Society
Frederick W. Kerr Award for Basic Research in Pain, American Pain Society
Fellow, American Headache Society
Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science

Teaching Interests

Pharmacology, pain and addiction studies, translational neuroscience, migraine and headache mechanisms, opioid pharmacology, and biomedical research training.

Research Interests

Pain and headache mechanisms, migraine, post-traumatic headache, opioid addiction, descending pain modulation, pain and reward pathways, stress-induced pain modulation, kappa opioid receptor signaling, sexually dimorphic pain mechanisms, female pain conditions, chronic pain, and discovery of new pain therapeutics.

Publications

Ito, Hisakatsu, et al. “Chronic Pain Recruits Hypothalamic Dynorphin Kappa Opioid Receptor Signalling to Promote Wakefulness and Vigilance.”. Brain, vol. 146, no. 3, Jan. 2023, pp. 1186-99, https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awac153.

Ashina, Sait, et al. “Medication Overuse Headache.”. Nat Rev Dis Primers, vol. 9, no. 1, Jan. 2023, p. 5, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41572-022-00415-0.

Navratilova, Edita, et al. “Preclinical Assessment of OnabotulinumtoxinA for the Treatment of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury-Related Acute and Persistent Post-Traumatic Headache.”. Cephalalgia, vol. 42, no. 11-12, Oct. 2022, pp. 1194-06, https://doi.org/10.1177/03331024221099841.

Starling, Amaal J, et al. “Cutaneous Heat and Light-Induced Pain Thresholds in Post-Traumatic Headache Attributed to Mild Traumatic Brain Injury.”. Headache, vol. 62, no. 6, June 2022, pp. 726-3, https://doi.org/10.1111/head.14318.

Ikegami, Daigo, et al. “A Prolactin-Dependent Sexually Dimorphic Mechanism of Migraine Chronification.”. Cephalalgia, vol. 42, no. 3, Mar. 2022, pp. 197-08, https://doi.org/10.1177/03331024211039813.

Martin, Laurent, et al. “Conotoxin Contulakin-G Engages a Neurotensin Receptor 2 R-Type Calcium Channel (Cav2.3) Pathway to Mediate Spinal Antinociception.”. Pain, vol. 163, no. 9, Jan. 2022, pp. 1751-62, https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pain.0000000000002561.

Watanabe, Moe, et al. “Dysregulation of Serum Prolactin Links the Hypothalamus With Female Nociceptors to Promote Migraine.”. Brain, vol. 145, no. 8, Jan. 2022, pp. 2894-09, https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awac104.

Kopruszinski, Caroline Machado, et al. “Editorial: Chronic Orofacial Pain”. Front Pain Res (Lausanne), vol. 3, Jan. 2022, p. 1086256, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpain.2022.1086256.

Kopruszinski, Caroline M, et al. “Exploring the Neurobiology of the Premonitory Phase of Migraine Preclinically - a Role for Hypothalamic Kappa Opioid Receptors?”. J Headache Pain, vol. 23, no. 1, Jan. 2022, p. 126, https://doi.org/10.1186/s10194-022-01497-7.

Yakhnitsa, Vadim, et al. “Kappa Opioid Receptor Blockade in the Amygdala Mitigates Pain Like-Behaviors by Inhibiting Corticotropin Releasing Factor Neurons in a Rat Model of Functional Pain.”. Front Pharmacol, vol. 13, Jan. 2022, p. 903978, https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2022.903978.

Lançon, Kevin, et al. “Decreased Dopaminergic Inhibition of Pyramidal Neurons in Anterior Cingulate Cortex Maintains Chronic Neuropathic Pain.”. Cell Rep, vol. 37, no. 9, Jan. 2021, p. 109933, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109933.

Khanna, Rajesh, et al. “Development and Characterization of An Injury-Free Model of Functional Pain in Rats by Exposure to Red Light.”. J Pain, vol. 20, no. 11, Jan. 2019, pp. 1293-06, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpain.2019.04.008.

Xie, Jennifer Y, et al. “Kappa Opioid Receptor Antagonists: A Possible New Class of Therapeutics for Migraine Prevention.”. Cephalalgia, vol. 37, no. 8, July 2017, pp. 780-94, https://doi.org/10.1177/0333102417702120.

Ibrahim, Mohab M, et al. “Long-Lasting Antinociceptive Effects of Green Light in Acute and Chronic Pain in Rats.”. Pain, vol. 158, no. 2, Feb. 2017, pp. 347-60, https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pain.0000000000000767.

Remesic, Michael, et al. “Recent Advances in the Realm of Allosteric Modulators for Opioid Receptors for Future Therapeutics.”. ACS Chem Neurosci, vol. 8, no. 6, Jan. 2017, pp. 1147-58, https://doi.org/10.1021/acschemneuro.7b00090.

Lee, Yeon Sun, et al. “Various Modifications of the Amphipathic Dynorphin A Pharmacophore for Rat Brain Bradykinin Receptors.”. Chem Biol Drug Des, vol. 88, no. 4, Oct. 2016, pp. 615-9, https://doi.org/10.1111/cbdd.12789.

Moutal, Aubin, et al. “(S)-Lacosamide Inhibition of CRMP2 Phosphorylation Reduces Postoperative and Neuropathic Pain Behaviors through Distinct Classes of Sensory Neurons Identified by Constellation Pharmacology.”. Pain, Jan. 2016, https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pain.0000000000000555.

Lee, Yeon Sun, et al. “Cyclic Non-Opioid Dynorphin A Analogues for the Bradykinin Receptors.”. Bioorg Med Chem Lett, vol. 26, no. 22, Jan. 2016, pp. 5513-6, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bmcl.2016.10.010.

Hall, Sara M, et al. “Discovery of Stable Non-Opioid Dynorphin A Analogues Interacting at the Bradykinin Receptors for the Treatment of Neuropathic Pain.”. ACS Chem Neurosci, vol. 7, no. 12, Jan. 2016, pp. 1746-52, https://doi.org/10.1021/acschemneuro.6b00258.

Ramos-Colon, Cyf N, et al. “Structure-Activity Relationships of [des-Arg(7)]Dynorphin A Analogues at the κ Opioid Receptor.”. J Med Chem, vol. 59, no. 22, Jan. 2016, pp. 10291-8, https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.6b01411.