Patrik Ernfors

Patrik Ernfors is Professor of Tissue Biology.

Higher education and positions:
Pregraduate student. January 1986-August 1986. The Midwest Photosynthesis Research Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
Graduate student. August 1987-May 1991. The laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institute, Stockhom, Sweden. Doktorandtjänst, MFR.
Dr. in Medical Sciences (PhD). 1991, May 24. Supervisor Håkan Persson, The laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institute, Stockhom, Sweden.
Assistant Professor. May 1991-May 1992. The laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institute, Stockhom, Sweden.
Post-doctoral fellow. June 1992-November 1994. Rudolf Jaenisch laboratory, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston, USA.
Docent 1994. Karolinska Institutet.
Associate Professor, 1994-1997. Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institute, Stockhom, Sweden.
Head of the Divisions of Molecular Neurobiology 1997-present. Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institutet.
Professor of Molecular Neurobiology, Karolinska Institutet, 1999-2000.
Present employment: Professor of Tissue Biology Karolinska Institutet, 2000-present.
Head of the Scheele animal house 1999-2007. Karolinska Institutet.
Vice Head of Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics Karolinska Institutet (2006).
Head of Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics Karolinska Institutet (2007-2010).
Member of the Council of the Nobel Foundation (2015-2019)
Member of the Nobel Assembly for the Prize in Physiology or Medicine (2007-present).
Member of the Board of Research, Karolinska Institutet 2012-2018.
Member of the International association for the study of pain (IASP) publications committee (PAIN, PAIN Reports, and the Pain Research Forum 2022-present).
Member of the scientific advisory board of the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation (2022-present).

Chronic pain engenders profound suffering, affecting up to 20% of the population and presenting a significant societal challenge. Despite the growing prevalence of pain-related disorders, there has been a notable shortfall in the development of effective pain relief medications. While numerous receptors and channels responsible for detecting painful stimuli are recognized, the precise cell types involved in pain transduction remain incompletely understood. Pain arises from the activation of diverse sensory neurons, each with distinct response profiles. Consequently, the coordinated response of various neuronal populations results in the perception of pain. At the forefront of our research is the goal to unravel the cellular and molecular complexities underlying pain.

We aim to delineate the specific cell types driving both acute and chronic pain, and to elucidate the molecular mechanisms contributing to hyperexcitability and persistent pain. Employing a diverse array of techniques, including single-cell RNA sequencing, single-cell accessible chromatin analysis, biochemistry, protein engineering, mouse genetic manipulation for capturing and modulating activity in previously active neurons, neural connectivity tracing, and mouse pain behavioral tests, we investigate both the ascending and descending pain pathways. Our overarching goal is to enhance our understanding of the neural underpinnings of pain, with the ultimate aspiration of facilitating the development of novel therapeutic strategies aimed at alleviating the suffering endured by chronic pain patients.