Final 'Traces Thursday' Case Study Explores Addiction-Free Pain Treatment

Stand Up for Science closes out its series on scientific patience with the story of how squids and scorpions helped in the fight against opioid addiction

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, November 14, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Stand Up for Science has released the twelfth and final installment of its weekly “Traces Thursday” series, case studies exploring the long roads of scientific research that lead to groundbreaking medical discoveries. The final story, “Treating pain without risk of addiction,” traces researchers’ efforts to develop a non-addictive painkiller as an alternative to opioids, and the resulting groundbreaking new compound, suzetrigine, marketed as Journavx.

Opioids are powerful and effective painkillers, but they come with the risk of tolerance, addiction, and abuse issues. The United States loses more than 50,000 people to overdose deaths every year, many of which begin with a prescription after a surgery or injury. Pain medicines that do not rely on the brain’s opioid system, avoiding addiction risks, are urgently needed.

As in the story of Ozempic, animal studies played a key role in developing the drug. In the 1940s, two biophysicists studying a squid nerve showed that nerve signals involve charged particles flowing through tiny tubes called ion channels. Decades later, scorpion venom, which paralyzes prey by blocking these channels, gave researchers the tools to identify and clone them. Humans have nine channels that transport sodium ions, and two appear to carry pain signals outside of the brain to the rest of the body. Members of families in Pakistan who feel no physical pain, due to mutations in one of the genes associated with these channels, helped confirm the idea.

Many companies tried and failed to develop a pain killer based on this mechanism, and finally in 2024, Vertex Pharmaceuticals developed suzetrigine, which the FDA approved in January 2025 for use after minor surgery. So far, the drug is well tolerated and shows no signs of causing dependence, though it has not been shown to work for more severe pain. Hundreds of thousands have used the drug successfully, and some analysts expect it to become a “blockbuster” drug.

“This story captures what the Traces Thursday series is all about. A study of squid nerves, a scorpion’s venom, and a family in Pakistan who couldn’t feel pain each seemed like a curiosity at the time. Together, with decades of persistence, they led to a new option for pain that doesn’t carry the risks of opioids. Basic research rarely moves fast, but it is how we find answers to problems we haven’t yet seen coming,” said Dr. Jeremy Berg, author of the Traces series and former director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences at NIH and former Editor-in-Chief of Science magazine, now a member of the Board of Advisors with Stand Up for Science.

Amid ongoing debate over federal science funding, “Traces Thursday” underscores the importance of sustained investment in basic and biomedical research. The medical advances explored throughout the series all depend on research that unfolds over periods of time far longer than a single grant cycle or presidential administration.

Stand Up for Science will publish a final wrap-up post next week on the Science Fight Club Substack, recapping lessons learned and the common threads woven through the Traces Thursday stories.

Berg is available for comment.

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Stand Up for Science is a grassroots, Washington, D.C. based, non-profit organization mobilizing the fight for science and democracy. Stand Up for Science was formed in February 2025 in response to actions affecting federal science agencies and funding of the American scientific ecosystem. On March 7th, Stand Up for Science mobilized over 50,000 people at 170+ events across the world on its first National Day of Action. Federal scientists across multiple agencies (NIH, EPA, NASA, FEMA) have chosen Stand Up for Science as the platform to publish their open letters of concern. Stand Up for Science is a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization [EIN: 33-4154429] and donations are not tax-deductible.

Char Bowling
Stand Up for Science
media@standupforscience.net