Supporting innovative pain research / EFIC-Grunenthal Grant 2009 awarded to five young scientists

Aachen (ots) - The European Federation of Chapters of the
International Association for the Study of pain (EFIC) and the
pharmaceutical company Grunenthal awarded the EFIC-Grunenthal Grant
to five young European scientists. The grant will provide financial
support for their future projects in innovative, exploratory clinical
and human experimental pain research. This year's projects will
investigate factors contributing to the development of neuropathic
pain, the role of the hormone oxytocin in placebo analgesia and
aspects of pain in children and newborns. Grunenthal donates a total
of EUR 100,000 for the grant which will be divided between the five
winners.

"We are glad that we have once again received many interesting
research proposals from young pain researchers across Europe," said
Professor Giustino Varrassi, President of EFIC. "As we have seen with
previous research supported by the EFIC-Grunenthal Grant, the five
projects we have chosen this year will contribute valuable insights
and help the medical community achieve a better understanding of
pain. Pain is a condition affecting the everyday lives of millions of
people worldwide and also poses a huge economic burden for societies.
Understanding the mechanisms of pain is crucial to improving
treatment in pain patients."

Winners and Projects 2009

The decision on the winners was entirely made by the EFIC
Sub-Committee on Research, which decided to support the following
five young researchers with EUR 20,000 each:

Luana Colloca (Italy): Oxytocin and placebo effect

Luana Colloca from the University of Turin will receive funding
for her research on placebo effect and the role of oxytocin as a
biochemical mediator of placebo analgesia.

Elspeth Hutton (UK): Neuroimmune cutaneous interactions in the
genesis of chronic neuropathic pain

Elspeth Hutton from the MRC Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases,
London is being recognised for her research on the role of skin
neuroimmune interactions in the genesis of chronic neuropathic pain.

Rebeccah Slater (UK): Measuring pain in the human infant brain

Rebeccah Slater from University College London is focusing on
measuring pain in the deeper structures of human infant brain and
investigates how the infant brain is activated by noxious
stimulation.

Tine Vervoort (Belgium): Pain demands the attention of others:
Parental detection, interpretation and responses to their child's
pain

Tine Vervoort from Ghent University will investigate determinants
of parental attention to and interpretation of their child's pain and
how this influences their behaviour.

Gunnar Wasner (Germany): Role of nociceptive afferents in
neuropathic pain

Gunnar Wasner from the University of Kiel will focus on whether
lesions in different afferent nociceptors might influence the
development of neuropathic pain.

"At Grunenthal we know that it is all about innovative ideas and
the passion to move forward. With our long-term experience in pain
therapy, we are dedicated to being a leading company in terms of
developing new therapeutic agents in pain treatment," explained
Wolfgang Becker, Member of the Executive Board of Grunenthal GmbH.
"With the EFIC-Grunenthal Grant we hope to drive innovative ideas and
encourage passionate researchers who are working for a better
understanding of pain. We wish the winners all the best for their
projects and are looking forward to learning more about the results
of their research."

Further information on the EFIC-Grunenthal Grant, including this
year's winners and projects, is available at www.e-g-g.info . A
digital press kit including photos from the award ceremony is
accessible online at www.grunenthal.com/press .

About EFIC

The European Federation of IASP(R) Chapters (EFIC(R)) is a
multidisciplinary professional organisation in the field of pain
science and medicine, made up of over 34 European Chapters of
IASP(R). Established in 1993, by Professor Ulf Lindblom, EFIC's
constituent chapters represent close to 20,000 scientists,
physicians, nurses, physiotherapists, psychologists and other
healthcare professionals across Europe, who study pain and treat
patients in pain. www.efic.org

About Grunenthal

Grunenthal is passionate about being the preferred global partner
in pain management for patients, health care professionals and
payors. The corporation drives innovation to expand European market
leadership in moderate to severe pain. Grunenthal is an independent,
family-owned German corporation with companies in 34 countries all
over the world. Founded in 1946, the corporation employs 2,000 people
in Germany and 5,200 worldwide. In 2008, Grunenthal achieved revenues
of about 864 million Euros. More information: www.grunenthal.com

Originaltext: Grünenthal GmbH
digital press kits: http://www.presseportal.de/pm/25388
press kits via RSS: http://www.presseportal.de/rss/pm_25388.rss2

Contacts:
Grunenthal GmbH
Dr Nicole Foellmer
Phone: +49 241 569-2858
Fax: +49 241 569-52858
nicole.foellmer@grunenthal.com

Hering Schuppener Healthcare
Bjoern Haertel
Phone: +49 40 36 80 75-21
Fax: +49 40 36 80 75-99
bhaertel@hs-healthcare.de

Current press materials are available in the press section at
www.grunenthal.com .