Browse the latest research summaries in the field of neuroplasticity for spinal cord injury patients and caregivers.
Showing 81-90 of 153 results
Neurorehabil Neural Repair, 2016 • June 1, 2016
The study examined the interactive effects of active exercise, passive exercise, and serotonergic pharmacotherapy on cortical reorganization in rats with spinal cord injuries. The researchers found th...
KEY FINDING: Passive exercise (bike) and serotonergic pharmacotherapy (quipazine) are ‘competing’ therapies, as quipazine limits the cortical reorganization induced by bike.
Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, 2015 • September 3, 2015
This review focuses on spinal plasticity induced by robotic-mediated therapy in humans, particularly in the lower limbs of patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) or stroke. It highlights the potential...
KEY FINDING: BWS robotic-assisted step training can lead to changes in spinal reflex pathways in patients with SCI or stroke, including re-emergence of physiological phase modulation.
Frontiers in Neuroscience, 2016 • December 27, 2016
Researchers have long been developing ways to improve the quality of life for patients who suffer from SCI, stroke, and other neurological disorders classically categorized as permanent. Patients are ...
KEY FINDING: Multi-disciplinary approaches are critical for therapeutic techniques to realize their full potential, suggesting that well-timed, goal-directed therapy and positive feedback mechanisms are necessary for axonal sprouting and lasting functional improvement.
Front. Neural Circuits, 2016 • March 2, 2016
The study investigates the role of spared axons on neuroplasticity in the lumbar enlargement after thoracic SCI, using an instrumental learning paradigm (ILP). Early after SCI (7 days), spinal learnin...
KEY FINDING: Spared axons are critical for adaptive plasticity in lumbar interneurons after thoracic SCI, enabling locomotor learning.
Behavioural Neurology, 2016 • January 12, 2016
The study aimed to investigate forelimb motor function after cervical spinal cord injury in juvenile and adult rats by performing a left segmental hemisection of the spinal cord after C3-C4 laminectom...
KEY FINDING: Left hemisection of the cervical spinal cord was not related to right-sided motor functions.
The Journal of Neuroscience, 2017 • March 29, 2017
This study demonstrates that deleting CX3CR1, a chemokine receptor primarily found on microglia and a subset of macrophages, enhances neuroprotection and plasticity in spared fibers following spinal c...
KEY FINDING: CX3CR1 deficiency in microglia and macrophages promotes a tissue-repair phenotype and increases expression of neurotrophic and gliogenic proteins after spinal cord injury.
Neurosci Lett, 2017 • April 24, 2017
This study examined the impact of long-term vibration training on H-reflex paired-pulse depression in individuals with chronic, complete SCI. The primary goal was to determine if vibration training co...
KEY FINDING: Trained limbs of all five participants showed H-reflex depression values within the range of acute SCI and non-SCI H-reflex depression.
Molecular Pain, 2017 • January 1, 2017
The study investigated dendritic spine remodeling in lamina II neurons after spinal cord injury (SCI) in rats exhibiting neuropathic pain. Results showed an inverse relationship between thin- and mush...
KEY FINDING: Total density of dendritic spines on lamina II neurons did not change after spinal cord injury.
Ann N Y Acad Sci, 2004 • December 1, 2004
Rehabilitation seeks to reduce impairments from neurological conditions using the brain's plasticity. It leverages biological changes after injury and external factors to influence neural pathways. Th...
KEY FINDING: The cortex in humans contributes to reaching, grasping, individuated finger movements, and walking-related motor control.
The Journal of Neuroscience, 2007 • October 31, 2007
This symposium summarizes scientific bases for current clinical trials aimed at improving functions after SCI. After primary and secondary damage, endogenous processes may foster or hinder axonal reco...
KEY FINDING: Function-blocking antibodies recognizing Nogo-A induce enhanced regenerative sprouting from injured fibers, long-distance regeneration of subpopulations of fibers, and enhanced compensatory fiber growth from non-injured fibers and tracts.