Providing movement to prosthetic limbs: John T. Gale, PhD, Neurosciences, is a Co-Principal Investigator on a $2M 4-year National Science Foundation Emerging Frontiers in Research and Innovation (EFRI) grant, “Robust Decoder-Compensator Architecture for Interactive Control of High-Speed and Loaded Movements.” This research is a collaborative effort with Johns Hopkins University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The overall aim of this project is to provide high speed and natural movements to prosthetic limbs. Through increased understanding of human motor control and developing improved brain-machine interactive control (BMIC) of prosthetic limbs, researchers hope to allow patients with spinal cord injuries and cerebellar ataxia to execute rapid natural trajectories. This program will also give students rare opportunities to address challenges at the interface between systems engineering, neurobiology, and neurosurgery.
Role of monocytes in multiple sclerosis: Richard Ransohoff, MD, Neurosciences, 3-year $434K grant from the Research and Clinical Programs Department of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society: “Monocytes and microglia in EAE”
In this project, researchers intend to clarify the roles of macrophages (a type of white blood cell) in inflammatory demyelination, an aspect of multiple sclerosis (MS). Macrophages can be derived from blood cells called monocytes or from brain cells called microglia.Monocytes and microglia look identical when activated to macrophage status, but the researchers believe they can carry out very different functions. The specific focus of this project is to use a novel genetic mouse model to distinguish for the first time roles of macrophages derived from microglia versus those coming from monocytes. Results will promote development of treatments for MS because if monocytes are the “bad guys”, their migration to the brain can be blocked. If they are “good guys” (promoting repair), then the monocytes should be left alone, and the microglia should be targeted.