Dr. Yeomans' laboratory’ conducts research on achieving a better understanding of and improving the management of pain. This work can be roughly divided into two distinct parts: pain physiology and diagnosis and pain therapy. In terms of pain diagnosis, his laboratory is focused on identifying biomolecular and physiological markers that are indicative of different pain pathologies and can be directive in choosing therapies for that pain state. Thus, they are examining changes in pain nerve (nociceptor) gene expression in skin and nerve tissue. For example, they have recently investigated changes in expression of voltage gated sodium channels under inflammatory and post-incisional conditions. They have also studied the release of neuropeptide, cytokine, and trophic biomarkers into skin and into the spinal epidural space during different pain and inflammatory states in rodents and humans and the effects of treatments on this release. This biomarker methodology is very useful in the process of analgesic and anti-inflammatory therapy development.