Translational NeuroRepair and Regeneration Laboratory
All Departments

Spinal Cord Injury

SCI Research

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a major cause of death and long-term paralysis with few treatment options. Our current research focuses on exploring pathological mechanisms of SCI, monitoring and tracking neurological injuries, and developing novel therapeutic methods such as autophagy modulating agents and targeted temperature management to promote neuroregeneration and neuroprotection.

Spinal Cord Injury Fig 1

Our lab personnel have extensive clinical experience in neurosurgery and evaluating functional recovery following neurological trauma using rat SCI models, locomotion analysis, and electrophysiology testing. Our recent work revealed the significant role of the blood-spinal cord barrier (BSCB) in diabetic animals suffering from SCI, and discovered that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress significantly impacts BSCB integrity.

Publications

Peer Journal Reviewed Publications

*Corresponding author

  1. Sarkar A, Kim KT, Tsymbalyuk O, Keledjian K, Jia X, Gerzanich V, Simard JM. A direct comparison of physical versus dihydrocapsaicin-induced hypothermia in a rat model of traumatic spinal cord injury. Ther. Hypothermia Temp Manag. 2022 Jun;12(2):90-102. doi: 10.1089/ther.2021.0013. Epub 2021 Oct 7. PMID: 35675523
  2. Zhou K, Chen H, Xu H, Jia X*. Trehalose Augments Neuron Survival and Improves Recovery from Spinal Cord Injury via mTOR-Independent Activation of Autophagy. Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2021 Jul 10;2021:8898996. doi: 10.1155/2021/8898996. eCollection 2021. PMID: 34336117
  3. Wang C, Xu T, Zhong X, Lachance BB, Shen G, Xu T, Tang C*, Jia X*. Critical roles of sphingosine kinase 1 in the regulation of neuroinflammation and neuronal injury after spinal cord injury. J Neuroinflammation.  2021 Feb 18;18(1):50. doi: 10.1186/s12974-021-02092-4. PMID: 33602274
  4. He Z, Zhou S, Yin J, Gao Z, Liu Y, Wu Y, He H, Zhou Y, Wang Q, Li J, Wu F, Xu HZ, Jia X*, Xiao J*. Inhibition of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Preserves the Integrity of Blood-Spinal Cord Barrier in Diabetic Rats Subjected to Spinal Cord Injury. Scientific Reports. 2017;7(1):7661. PMID
  5. Zhou K, Sansur CA, Xu H, Jia X*. The temporal pattern, flux, and function of autophagy in spinal cord injury. Int J Mol Sci. 2017 Feb 21;18(2). pii: E466. PMID
  6. Jia X*, Kowalski RG, Sciubba DM, Geocadin RG. Critical Care of Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury. J Intensive Care Med. 2013 Jan-Feb;28(1):12-23. doi: 10.1177/0885066611403270. Epub 2011 Apr 11. PMID: 21482574