Overview
Katherine Martucci Ph.D. is a neuroscientist who specializes in human clinical research of chronic pain, reward and motivation behaviors, sensory and acute pain perception, and opioid use and addiction. Dr. Martucci serves as Director of the Human Affect and Pain Neuroscience Lab which uses a combination of neuroimaging techniques, including functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of the brain and cervical spinal cord, as well as sensory, behavioral and psychological tests to study acute and chronic pain in humans.
As part of the Center for Translational Pain Medicine (CTPM), Dr. Martucci’s lab is part of Duke University’s Department of Anesthesiology, conducting research in collaboration with the Brain Imaging and Analysis Center (BIAC) and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences (DIBS).
Dr. Martucci earned her Ph.D. in Neurobiology and Anatomy at Wake Forest School of Medicine and continued her training in clinical research with a postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University. While at Stanford, Dr. Martucci obtained a prestigious NIH K99 “Pathway to Independence Award”. Since joining Duke University in 2018, Dr. Martucci has acquired funding via multiple NIH grants to continue her line of neuroimaging clinical research of the central nervous system in chronic pain.
Current Appointments & Affiliations
Recent Publications
Reduced trapezius pressure pain threshold in fibromyalgia and opioid use.
Journal Article J Pain · June 3, 2025 While opioid medications are potent analgesics, their usage in chronic pain conditions can paradoxically result in opioid-induced hyperalgesia (i.e., enhanced pain sensitivity). However, among individuals with chronic pain, minimal research has examined th ... Full text Link to item CiteNeural correlates of altered reward-driven attention in chronic pain and opioid use.
Journal Article Sci Rep · April 25, 2025 While attentional processing of reward may be altered in chronic pain, the neural circuits underlying these alterations, and impact from opioid use have remained unclear. To investigate the neural representation of attentional processing in chronic pain, w ... Full text Link to item CiteNociplasticity: A Proposed Concept to Understand the Symptomatology of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.
Journal Article Arthritis Rheumatol · March 10, 2025 Full text Link to item CiteRecent Grants
Neural correlates and behavioral impact of withdrawal-induced hyperalgesia among people who smoke with and without chronic pain
ResearchCo-Principal Investigator · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2025 - 2030Neurobiological Effects of Long-Term Opioid Therapy in the Brain and Spinal Cord
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Institute on Drug Abuse · 2022 - 2027Integrated Training in Anesthesiology Research
Inst. Training Prgm or CMEMentor · Awarded by National Institute of General Medical Sciences · 1996 - 2026View All Grants