Traumatic injury to the nervous system affect many people around the world:

1. There are ~250,000 spinal cord injury patients in the USA and ~17,000 new cases annually. 

2. There are ~60,000 spinal cord injury patients in the UK and ~2,500 new cases annually.  

3. 3% of all traumatic cases annually will also have peripheral nerve injury.

 

We are studying axonal regeneration post traumatic injury and are specifically interested in spinal cord and peripheral nerve injuries. The central and peripheral nervous systems respond differently the injury, and even within the central nervous system, some subsystems show more regenerative capacity than others.

 

We are using bioengineering approaches to promote and enhance axonal regeneration. Our bioengineered scaffolds have an inner structure composed of linear microchannles that guide axons through an injury site to precisely penetrate the distal side where the intact axon was present pre-injury, thus improving the fidelity of regeneration. 

 

We are interested in understanding basic mechanisms that support regeneration, e.g. the role of Schwann cells in peripheral nerve regeneration, angiogenesis and regeneration, or axons response to various biomaterials. We then use those insights when fabricating bioengineered scaffolds to enhance their functionality.

  

We use drug delivery approaches by combining nanoparticles carrying various neurotrophic factors to pull more axons into the injury site. 

We also use in-vivo electrical stimulation approaches in the injury site and its interface with the intact tissue, to push more axons to regenerate and bridge the injury.

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We test those bioengineering approaches in rodent models of spinal cord and peripheral nerve injury. The promising approaches then move to preclinical studies, aiming to lead to clinical trials and hopefully in the future, to improve patients' lives. 

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We are always interested in new and exciting ideas and hypotheses and are open for new collaborations in order to help those suffering from traumatic injuries. 

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