Neuroplasticity Research

KEY FINDING: Reorganization of the CNS, including synaptic plasticity, axonal sprouting, and cellular proliferation, has long been known to spontaneously occur following spinal cord lesions.

KEY FINDING: Neuroplasticity, involving both neuronal and non-neuronal mechanisms, plays a significant role in brain function, with synaptic transmission being a key site for plasticity.

KEY FINDING: Neither exercise alone, ChABC alone, nor the combination of both treatments resulted in a significant improvement in locomotor function compared with mice that had no wheels and intraparenchymal vehicle injections.

KEY FINDING: Expiratory motor drive to abdominal muscles is not significantly impaired during cough in cats that are chronically hemisected in the lower thoracic spinal cord.

KEY FINDING: Exercise training improved performance on tasks specifically related to the training regimen, indicating a task-specific benefit.

KEY FINDING: Acute chondroitinase infusion decreased intact CSPGs and significantly increased pericontusional cortical grey and white matter GAP43-positive axon sprouting at 7 days post-injury.

KEY FINDING: BWSTT accelerates locomotor recovery in contused rats, improves H-reflex properties, reduces muscle atrophy, and decreases sprouting of small caliber afferent fibers. BWSTT-contused animals showed accelerated locomotor recovery, improved H-reflex properties, reduced muscle atrophy, and decreased sprouting of small caliber afferent fibers.

KEY FINDING: Patients who received active tDCS treatment showed greater improvement in hand function and hand usage compared to those who received sham treatment.

KEY FINDING: Chondroitinase ABC (ChABC) injections into the spinal cord during chronic stroke induced significant sprouting of corticospinal axons originating in the peri-infarct cortex, indicating increased structural plasticity.

KEY FINDING: Injured axons in the CNS often fail to regenerate and form dystrophic end bulbs, which persist at the lesion border.