Popularity Contest: What Were You Reading in 2025?

MSC coverage of a mouse study testing the effectiveness of different ratios of CBD to THC in reducing migraine-like symptoms takes the top spot in our annual Top 10 list.

As 2025 draws to a close, it’s time for Migraine Science Collaborative’s annual list of the most popular content published on the site over the year.

Landing in the number one spot is our coverage of collaborative work from the labs of Andrew Russo, University of Iowa, and Arn van den Maagdenberg, Leiden University Medical Center, who tested various combinations of CBD and THC in three different animal models of migraine. A 100:1 ratio of CBD to THC emerged as the most effective at alleviating various migraine-like symptoms in the animals. The study, which appeared in Cephalalgia, has immediate clinical implications, particularly for the design of clinical trials of cannabis as a potential migraine treatment in people.

Taking the number two spot in our rankings is coverage of research led by Michael Rogers, Harvard Medical School, who reported that, just as in migraine, CGRP signaling plays a role in the pathophysiology of endometriosis pain, too. The evidence for this conclusion comes not only from a mouse model of endometriosis pain, but also from human tissue samples from people with endometriosis. The specific mechanism involved neuroimmune crosstalk, with CGRP released from neurons in endometriotic lesions activating macrophages via RAMP1, the CGRP receptor. The work, published in Science Translational Medicine, broadens thinking about CGRP signaling, showing that this familiar player in migraine has additional roles to play beyond that condition.

A policy piece hits at number three in the rankings. This story reported a sampling of opinion from the scientific, patient, and advocacy communities about what effects science policy changes from the US government might have on the migraine field. Those who spoke to MSC all expressed uncertainty about what the ultimate effects will be on headache research and funding, on care for people living with headache disorders, and on careers in the field, particularly those of early-career investigators.

Our reporting on a study that combined three types of imaging – the highest-resolution structural MRI available to date, functional MRI, and PET imaging – to better understand trigeminal nerve structure and function, and how they relate to migraine, comes in at number four. The study, a collaborative effort amongst mainly Boston-based researchers and published in Brain, found that structural changes in the trigeminal root entry zone, which is where the trigeminal nerve enters the brainstem, were associated with increased neuroinflammation, and lower brainstem activity, in people with migraine.

At number five is our story covering research linking cellular senescence to neuropathic pain, and to facial pain. Investigators led by Saida Hadjab, from the Karolinska Institutet, reached that conclusion using nerve injury models, as well as dorsal root ganglia tissue samples from people with pain. Though it was not focused on headache per se, the study’s finding that senescence also occurred in trigeminal ganglion cells suggests potential relevance to headache disorders, and to trigeminal neuralgia.

The full Top 10 list appears below, followed by another list of the Top 5 most popular articles this year on MSC that were published before 2025.

The Top 10 most popular MSC articles in 2025

1. CBD and THC for Migraine Treatment: A Study in Mice Says Working Together Is Better Than Working Alone | May 16, 2025

New research finds that a 100:1 ratio of CBD to THC effectively reduces migraine-like symptoms in three preclinical models of migraine. The results could help clinical investigators as they test the drugs in patients.

2. A Key Migraine Mechanism Is Responsible for Endometriosis Pain | February 19, 2025

CGRP signaling from neurons to immune cells drives endometriosis pain and lesion growth, suggesting that CGRP-blocking drugs could be a potential treatment for the condition.

3. New US Government Policies Hit the Migraine Field | March 3, 2025

Members of the migraine community express uncertainty about how the new directives will play out.

4. The Trigeminal Nerve and Migraine: Linking Structure to Function | April 16, 2025

A new study combines structural MRI, functional MRI, and PET imaging to connect changes in the trigeminal root entry zone to inflammation and brainstem activity in people with migraine.

5. When Cells Age: A New Contributor to Chronic Pain – and Potentially to Headache, Too | January 14, 2025

An animal study, supported by human data, shows that cellular senescence is associated with neuropathic and facial pain. The findings suggest that a similar process could also underlie headache conditions.

6. Clinical Studies Update: A Wide Range of Research for the Start of 2025 | March 20, 2025

Recent work spans from hemiplegic migraine to classification of aura, from microRNAs and migraine to trigeminal nerve microstructure, and more.

7. Taking the Long View to Understand CACNA1A-Related Hemiplegic Migraine | April 24, 2025

A new longitudinal study of a rare type of migraine suggests every attack should be treated as potentially life threatening.

8. Migraine Science Collaborative 2025 Midyear Update | July 15, 2025

Effects of new US government policies on the migraine field, and cellular senescence as a new contributor to chronic pain – and possibly headache, too – take the top two spots, respectively.

9. Bringing Attention to Vestibular Migraine: A Conversation with Hamid Djalilian | October 2, 2025

In this Migraine Science Collaborative interview, Dr. Hamid Djalilian discusses his interest in vestibular migraine, the mis- and under-diagnosis of this condition, and what he would like people to know about it.

10. New Clinical Trial Results: Anti-CGRP Treatment Improves Migraine and Comorbid Depression | July 2, 2025

The first study of its kind shows that fremanezumab could be an effective drug to manage this common comorbidity of migraine.

The Top 5 most popular MSC articles published before 2025 that were accessed by readers this year:

1. People Who Have Never Had a Headache: What Explains It? A Conversation with Isa Amalie Olofsson and Thomas Folkmann Hansen | July 30, 2024

Isa Amalie Olofsson and Thomas Folkmann Hansen discuss their research on headache-free individuals.

2. Is Alcohol a Migraine Trigger? | February 20, 2023

A new prospective cohort study reports that alcohol does not trigger migraines, even suggesting that in some instances, it is associated with a lower probability of a migraine attack.

3. When the Trash Builds Up and the Sink Doesn’t Drain: Lymphatic System Dysfunction Contributes to Migraine | July 18, 2024

A new cell and animal study highlights reduced lymphatic vessel permeability in the meninges as a novel mechanism underlying migraine.

4. Going Green (Light) for Migraine and Pain: A Conversation with Mohab Ibrahim | March 19, 2024

In this MSC interview, Mohab Ibrahim discusses the science of green light, its potential as a therapy for migraine and pain, and lingering questions about the approach.

5. Open Burn Pit Exposure Increases the Risk of Headache Disorders and Migraine in Veterans | November 20, 2024

A retrospective cohort study including almost 250,000 veterans showed that the risk was highest in those with the most exposure.

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