How does the brain differentiate painful from non-painful touch?
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Updates every hour. Last Updated: 25-Oct-2025 07:11 ET (25-Oct-2025 11:11 GMT/UTC)
Salk neuroscientists discover brain area called gracile nucleus is central to the development of mechanical allodynia, a chronic pain condition that affects 7 to 10 percent of the global population. The findings show that uncoordinated gracile nuclei neural activity patterns cause mechanical allodynia—not a simple increase in activity as previously assumed. The discovery aids the century-long scientific endeavor of deciphering how the brain perceives and encodes pain and is a crucial step toward designing acute and chronic pain therapeutics.
A new study published in The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, a journal from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS), offers rare insight into what it’s like to grow up as the child of a cardiothoracic (CT) surgeon mother, revealing a powerful blend of challenges, inspiration, and resilience.
Researchers at the University of Toronto have found that nearly one in four older adults age 60 or older who reported poor well-being at the beginning of a national study —due to pain, health issues, low mood, or isolation—had regained optimal well-being within just three years.