The Migraine Trust Fellowship recipients announced
Neuroscientists awarded fellowships for projects that seek to learn more about the role of hormones in migraine
We are delighted to announce that neuroscientists Alejandro Labastida Ramirez and Ishita Mehta have been awarded our latest fellowships. We set up the fellowships to support the development of early career clinicians or scientists to undertake clinical or fundamental scientific research in headache disorders. Financial support has been provided to The Migraine Trust as a grant from Pfizer Ltd.
Alejandro, who is based at the Wolfson Centre for Age-Related Diseases Department at King’s College London, will be studying the estrogen-dependent sensitization of trigeminal neuropeptide signalling, and the interplay of migraine and temporomandibular joint disorder. He will explore why women are three times more likely to get migraine than men. This research will aim to determine which are the molecular mechanisms underlying this complex association, focusing on the influence of estrogen and its interaction with key neuropeptides involved in migraine.
"It is well-known that migraine is more prevalent and disabling in women, however, most of the preclinical research still focuses on males. This fellowship will allow me to research migraine female-specific mechanisms and will hopefully pave the way to female-specific therapies. I am very grateful with The Migraine Trust for funding and recognizing the translational potential of this research."
Ishita, who is based at the Wolfson Centre for Age-Related Diseases at King’s College London, will be studying the role of hormones and the difference in prevalence in migraine between men and women. She will study the role of the reproductive neuropeptide kisspeptin as a sexually dimorphic novel therapeutic target for migraine.
“As a young female, I am acutely aware of the significant gender-gap in migraine therapy. I hope to use this fellowship to help uncover a novel strategy, specifically designed to bridge this gender-gap and help reduce the disproportionate burden of migraine in females.”
“Alejandro and Ishita’s research is aiming to fill a critical gap in our understanding of the role that hormones play in migraine. The potential for developing new and ground-breaking treatments, particularly in treating migraine in women, is very exciting. Migraine is far more common in women than men and is often harder to treat, so it is particularly important that we understand why and know how to treat it. I am very grateful to Pfizer Ltd for their support, which has enabled us to fund these two exciting and important pieces of research.”
