Granada, Spain – June 27, 2025
The SIGMA-1 EUROPE COST Action advanced the activities of Working Group 3 (WG3) with a dedicated meeting held on June 27, 2025 at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Granada, Spain (Salón de Grados B). The session, led by Enrique J. Cobos (University of Granada, Spain) and Emanuele Amata (University of Catania, Italy), gathered 32 participants on site and 11 online attendees.
The meeting focused on initiating discussions around the identification of the most appropriate in vitro and in vivo methods for testing sigma-1 receptor ligands, addressing Deliverable D3.1. Prior to the event, a survey on usability and preferences regarding available testing methods was circulated to all WG3 members.
During the session, WG3 Leaders presented the survey results, highlighting the methods routinely employed by the research groups within WG3. These approaches were categorized as receptor-level, cellular-level, and physiological-level (in vivo) techniques. Among them, the BiP dissociation assay emerged as the most favored, followed by in vivo pain testing and the allosteric modulation of radioligand binding by phenytoin.
Following the overview, several WG3 members showcased the specific methodologies applied in their laboratories for testing sigma compounds. Presentations were delivered by: Carmen Abate, Emanuele Amata, Xavier Codony, Francisco Ciruela, Enrique J. Cobos, Marco Peviani and Darija Obradovic.
Participants also explored the possibility of organizing the next WG3 meeting as a full-day, in-person event, with Catania proposed by Amata as a potential host location.
