Recently, Professor Xu Guangyin's team from the Institute of Neuroscience at our university published a research paper titled "The paraventricular thalamus mediates visceral pain and anxiety-like behaviors via two distinct pathways" in the journal Neuron.

The paper proposes that the Paraventricular thalamus (PVT) functions as a "sorting center" for visceral pain and anxiety, and is a key brain region for the brain's specific recognition and transmission of visceral pain and anxiety. The research found that different subregions of the PVT respond differently to visceral pain and anxiety-like behavioral stimuli, and mediate visceral pain and anxiety-like behaviors through different neural circuits and molecular targets. More importantly, this study reveals the neural mechanism by which visceral pain indirectly promotes the occurrence and development of anxiety-like behaviors.

In recent years, Professor Xu Guangyin's research group has made a series of advances in the neural circuit mechanisms related to visceral pain. Their work further expands the understanding of the central nervous system and molecular mechanisms of visceral pain, providing theoretical support for precise diagnosis and treatment of related diseases.

Article link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2025.04.019