Peter Cruz-Gordillo
Age:19
Year: Sophomore
College/University: Duke University
Intended major/minor(s): Undecided
Future career goals: MD or MD/PhD
Place of birth: San Juan, PR
Hometown: Miami, FL
Hobbies: Reading, watching/collecting/making films, playing the guitar, playing volleyball, basketball and golf
Faculty Mentor: Greg Wray, PhD
Summer Research Project: Interspecies and intraspecies comparisons of opioid/orphanin gene expression between Homo sapiens and Pan troglodytes
Abstract: Peter Cruz-Gordillo, Courtney C. Babbitt, William J. Nielsen, Gregory A. Wray
Pain refers to an intricate combination of perceptual and emotional experiences, whose reactions inherently share some variation of a highly subjective element. Pain is the leading reason for why people seek medical attention (citation). It is an essential diagnostic tool due to its protean nature and the distinct signatures it leaves on diseases/illnesses. Nociception, or the perception of pain, alludes to the conveyance of noxious stimuli information to be processed and mediated by the brain.
The various means by which the body perceives, transmits, and resolves the experience of pain is moderated by a host of molecules, including neuropeptides whose precursors are encoded by the opioid/orphanin gene family. Besides their connection to the sensation/regulation of pain, these neuropeptides are known to affect consciousness, behavior/reward systems, mood/appetite regulation, and memory/learning mechanisms. Additionally, previous studies have shown there to be signatures of selection between the human and chimpanzee branches. Comprehending the expression levels of opioid genes in the brain, especially via a comparison between such closely related species as humans and chimpanzees, is vital to gaining a deeper grasp of predispositions to certain cognitive/neurological conditions and states. The opioid/orphanin gene family is compelling in the sense that there is not only a network that occurs from ligand to receptor but furthermore through a cross-talk between the genes. Our aim was to better perceive this particular gene network by taking an evolutionary approach. Understanding interspecies and intraspecies expression differences afforded us the ability to gain insight into an apparent selection spanning these networks.