Life Sciences Commons^™

Myelin, Cpla2, And Azithromycin: Modulation Of Macrophage Activation In Spinal Cord Injury Inflammation, Timothy J. Kopper

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Spinal cord injury (SCI) produces a chronic inflammatory state primarily mediated by macrophages consisting of resident microglia and infiltrating monocytes. These chronically activated SCI macrophages adopt a pro-inflammatory, pathological state that continues to cause additional damage after the initial injury and inhibits recovery. While the roles of macrophages in SCI pathophysiology are well documented, the factors contributing to this maladaptive response are poorly understood. Here, we identify the detrimental effects of myelin debris on macrophage physiology and demonstrate a novel, activation state-dependent role for cytosolic phospholipase-A2 (cPLA₂) in myelin- mediated potentiation of pro-inflammatory macrophage activation. Macrophage- mediated inflammatory …

Novel Mammalian Models For Understanding And Treating Spinal Cord Injury, Michael B. Orr

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is devastating and often leaves the injured individual with persistent dysfunction. The injury persists because humans have poor wound repair and there are no pharmacologic treatments to induce wound repair after SCI. The continued efforts to discover therapeutic targets and develop treatments heavily relies on animal models. The purpose of this project is to develop and study novel mammalian models of SCI to provide insights for the development and effective implementation of SCI therapies.

Lab mice (Mus musculus) are a powerful tool for recapitulating the progression and persistent damage evident in human SCI, but …