UofL gets record $8.5 million federal grant for spinal cord research

The University of Louisville has received a record $8.5 million federal grant for research that could lead to restoration of movement for people with spinal cord injuries.

The five-year grant from the Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence, a program administered by the National Institutes of Health, will fund the Kentucky Spinal Injury Research Center.

The facility will bring together researchers from diverse medical disciplines to develop methods to repair or replace damaged spinal cord and central nervous system tissue. Scott Whittemore, UofL's Henry D. Garretson professor and vice chair for research in neurological surgery, is the center's director.

"This grant is significant for the university and the Commonwealth on several levels," University President John W. Shumaker said. "It's the largest NIH grant ever received by the university and one of two or three of the largest grants of any kind to UofL.

"And it's a direct result of our efforts at the University of Louisville and within the Commonwealth of Kentucky to increase the number of federally funded research projects at the state's two research universities."

Shumaker noted that Whittemore was recruited to UofL in 1998 partly with money from the state's "Bucks for Brains" program. Additional funding was provided by Norton Healthcare and the state-sponsored Kentucky Spinal Cord-Head Injury Research Trust.

"This is an example of how the Bucks for Brains program has yielded very important and very exciting results for the research communities of the Commonwealth," Shumaker said.

Dr. Joel Kaplan, dean of the School of Medicine and vice president for health affairs, echoed Shumaker's comments.

"Today is a very proud day for the School of Medicine," Kaplan said. "This grant confirms that by our attracting researchers like Scott Whittemore to UofL, the rest of the nation is starting to recognize what we're doing."

Under the grant, the Kentucky Spinal Injury Research Center will launch five research projects, each headed by a separate UofL faculty member. The research areas include:

--The chemical signaling pathways in central nervous system cells that appear to control when cells die due to lack of oxygen. Principal investigator will be Evelyne Gozal, assistant professor of pediatrics.

--The reconstruction, following spinal cord injury, of the central nervous system circuitry that controls locomotion. Principal investigator will be David S.K. Magnuson, associate professor of neurological surgery.

--The potential use of adult internal nasal cells called olfactory epithelium as a source of stem cells that can be transplanted to repair damaged central nervous system tissue. Principal investigator will be Fred J. Roisen, professor and chairman of the Department of Anatomical Sciences and Neurobiology.

--The regeneration of functioning sensory pathways after spinal cord injury. Principal investigator will be Stephen M. Onifer, assistant professor of neurological surgery.

The center will recruit a researcher in neuro-immunology, neuroprotection and/or cell death to serve as principal investigator for the fifth project. David Canning of Murray State University also will participate in the effort. Canning's research assesses the function of cells that inhibit nerve cell regeneration.