Assistant Professor, Neuroscience, Anesthesiology and Pain Management

B.Sc., Tallinn University of Technology

Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley

Animals have evolved the ability to discriminate between different types of tissue injuries and perceive them as distinct pain states. The Pool Lab seeks to understand cellular mechanisms through which the spinal cord translates tissue damage into central pain perception and orchestrates adaptive and maladaptive pain behaviors. To this end, the Pool Lab is studying the functional role of diverse spinal cord output neuron classes that link the spinal cord to the central brain and give rise to all pain perception below the neck. Furthermore, the lab aims to develop a new therapeutic avenue to selectively mute pain-conveying spinal cell types based on cellular features that differentiate them from the rest of the delicate spinal cord circuitry. Consequently, Allan-Hermann Pool and his team hope to identify new cellular and molecular targets for precision control of the perception of pain.