Profiles
Dr Sam Hughes
Lecturer in Human Neuroscience
School of Psychology (Faculty of Health)
Biography
Biography
Lecturer in Human Neuroscience
Head of the Pain Modulation Lab at the Brain Research and Imaging Centre (BRIC)
Qualifications
- BSc Pharmacology (1st class): University College London
- MRC funded 4 year PhD Studentship in Systems Neuroscience (pain research): University of Bristol
During my PhD I worked in the laboratories of Prof Bridget Lumb and Prof Tony Pickering to investigate changes in descending noradrenergic control during the development of neuropathic pain. I then completed two postdoctoral positions with Dr Paul Strutton in the musculoskeletal (MSK) Lab at Imperial College London, where I began to develop an independent line of research into the use of neurotechnology (e.g. neuromodulation and immersive virtual reality) to study the descending control of pain in human pain models. I then secured a research fellowship in Dr Matthew Howard's Lab at Kings College London to further explore the use of neuromodulation techniques in human pain models. In 2020 I joined the University of Plymouth as a Lecturer and I run the Pain Modulation Lab at the Brain Research and Imaging Centre (BRIC).
Awards
Faculty of Biomedical Sciences Commendation; awarded for PhD thesis; University of Bristol.
The Professor Anthony Mellows Medal; awarded for Research Fellowship proposal; Kings College London
Nominated for a Student Academic Choice Award (SACA); teaching and supervision excellence; Imperial College London
Nominated for a Student and Staff Teaching and Representation (SSTAR) award; personal tutor of the year; University of Plymouth
Professional membership
Associate Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA)
Roles on external bodies
Editorial board member for Frontiers in Pain Research (neuropathic pain section)
Teaching
Teaching
Teaching interests
I teach on the following undergraduate modules:
Research
Research
Research interests
Research in my lab involves investigating cortical influences over endogenous pain modulation systems and translating these findings into novel mechanism-driven therapeutics for chronic pain patients. Through collaborations with experts in a range of disciplines, I use a combination of psychophysics, neuroimaging and neurotechnology alongside human surrogate pain models with a view to harness activity within discrete cortically-driven analgesic pathways.
For more information see the Pain Modulation Lab page at BRIC.
Collaborators:
- Dr Matt Howard (Kings College London)
- Dr Kirsty Bannister (Kings College London)
- Professor Ben Seymour (Oxford)
- Professor Valerie Sparkes (Cardiff)
- Professor Helen Dawes (Exeter)
- Dr Aleksandra Vuckovic (Glasgow)
- Dr Paul Strutton (Imperial College London)
- Dr Nir Grossman (Imperial College London)
- Dr Ines Violante (University of Surrey)
- Prof Thomas Graven-Nielsen (Aalborg University, Denmark)
Grants & contracts
Active grants:
2022 – 2025: Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). Neurotechnology for Chronic Pain. £1,161,841.47 (Co-Investigator).
2022 – 2024: Academy of Medical Sciences Springboard Award. Virtually painless? Steps towards mechanism-driven use of immersive virtual reality for chronic pain. £98,156.00 (Principle Investigator).
2022 – 2023: The Pain Relief Foundation. The effects of non-invasive brain stimulation on chronic pain and central sensitisation in patients with radicular low-back pain (sciatica): a randomised, sham-controlled proof-of-principle study. £21,207. (Co-investigator)
2020 – 2024: Kings Prize/Anthony Mellow Fellowship. Harnessing endogenous analgesia with non-invasive deep brain stimulation. £148,601. (Principle Investigator).
Publications
Publications
Key publications
Key publications are highlighted
Journals