Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Animal Research

Thomas Nevian studied physics and biophysics in Heidelberg, Germany, St. Andrews, UK and at the Cornell University, USA. He performed his PhD work with Prof. Dr. Bert Sakmann at the Max-Planck-Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg, investigating cellular mechanisms of plasticity in cortical neurons. After his dissertation in 2003 and two further years as post-doc in Heidelberg, he became a group leader in the Department of Physiology at the University of Bern (Switzerland).  In 2010 he received a Research-Professorship of the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF-Professor). In 2012 he was appointed Tenure-Track-Assistentprofessor and since 2014 he is Full Professor of Physiology (Ordinarius) at the University of Bern and Co-Director of the Department of Physiology. His research in Neuroscience was awarded with the Pfizer Research Prize twice (2008, 2016) and in 2012 he received the Theodor-Kocher-Preis as best young researcher of the University of Bern. In 2015 he received an ERC-Consolidator grant to study the neuronal networks involved in pain processing in the cerebral cortex. He is a member of the steering committee of the Clinical Neurosciences Bern (CNB) and was Secretary of the Swiss Society for Neuroscience.

Thomas Nevian investigates the fundamental mechanisms of signal processing in the brain using state-of-the-art microscopy and electrophysiology techniques. His research group investigates the biophysics of neurons, principles of memory formation and the development of chronic pain. Here the main focus is to understand nociceptive processing in the anterior cingulate cortex, a brain region that is involved in the emotional evaluation of the experience that comprises pain.

Bruno Pradier (BP) graduated at the University of Bonn where he received extensive training in behavioral biology and animal pain models. Following his PhD, he took on a postdoctoral stay in the in the laboratory of Julie Kauer at Brown University from 2015-2019. Here, he successfully worked on synaptic and neuronal plasticity and developed novel in vitro models related to craniofacial pain, including headache and migraine. For his work he was recognized with an award by the American Headache Society (2017). In 2019 he joined the laboratories of Esther Pogatzki-Zahn (EPZ) and Cornelius Faber (CF) at the University of Münster to investigate behavioral and cerebral plasticity in animal models for post-surgical and neuropathic pain. In CF’s laboratory, he successfully established mechanical task fMRI in mice that now enables the investigation of brain network processing of mechanical pain in longitudinal studies. In the laboratory of EPZ he investigates behavioral changes related to acute and chronic pain using multimodal assessments. For data analysis he integrates deep- and machine-learning approaches to analyze complex data sets. During his time at the University of Münster, he raised peer-reviewed funding for a project investigating sex differences in plasticity of brain networks during acute and chronic pain.

Daniel Segelcke graduated at the Ruhr University of Bochum, where he received extensive training in behavioral biology and animal pain models for migraine. Following his PhD in 2012, he joined the laboratories of Esther Pogatzki-Zahn (EPZ) at the University of Münster to investigate behavioral, cerebral processing and proteome signatures in animal models for post-surgical, pathogene pain, neuropathic pain, and bone-tumor induced pain. He successfully established novel rodent behavior assays, devices and analytic methods to investigate multidimensional pain modalities in rats and mice in longitudinal studies. Machine learning approaches performs some of these analysis methods. During his time at the University of Münster, he raised peer-reviewed funding for a preclinical systematic review, which investigate the impact of buprenorphine (opioid) in biomedical animal research. During his time at the University of Münster, he raised peer-reviewed funding for a preclinical systematic review, which investigate the impact of buprenorphine (opioid) in biomedical animal research.

David Finn is Established Professor of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Principal Investigator and Founding Co-Director of the Centre for Pain Research at University of Galway, Ireland. Professor Finn graduated with a BSc (Hons) in Biotechnology from University of Galway and a PhD in Neuroscience from University of Bristol, and he worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Nottingham.  His research focuses on the affective and cognitive dimensions of pain, stress-pain interactions, and neuroinflammatory processes, with an emphasis on the endogenous cannabinoid system. He is Past-President of the International Cannabinoid Research Society (ICRS) and of the Irish Pain Society. He has been a member of the Presidential Task Forces for Cannabis, Cannabinoids and Chronic Pain of both the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) and the European Pain Federation (EFIC), and leader of the Basic Science Work Package for the IASP Task Force. He is a member of the EFIC Working Groups for Translational Pain Research and Pain Research Strategy, the IASP Task Force for Use of Animals in Pain Research, a member of the Scientific Programme Committees for the IASP 2026 and 2024 World Pain Congresses, NeuPSIG 2025, EFIC 2022, and a member of EFIC Council.   Professor Finn is a member of the Editorial Boards of multiple international scientific journals including Pain, Journal of Psychopharmacology, Frontiers in Neuropharmacology, Frontiers in Pain Research, and the Scandinavian Journal of Pain. He has published over 190 peer-reviewed journal papers and book chapters and frequently lectures at international conferences.