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The Expression And Function Of Phosphacan/Rptpβ In Adaptive Synaptogenesis After Traumatic Brain Injury, Janna Harris

Theses and Dissertations

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) affects 1.5 million Americans annually and is a major health concern. Increasing evidence suggests that the brain extracellular environment regulates plasticity and synaptic recovery following TBI. Here we have focused on phosphacan/RPTPβ, an alternatively spliced group of chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans which are prominent within the mature brain extracellular matrix (ECM). Previous studies show that phosphacan/RPTPβ influences neuronal migration, adhesion, neurite outgrowth, and morphogenesis. However, our understanding of how these important ECM components are involved in recovery from brain trauma remains unclear. In the present study, we used unilateral entorhinal cortex lesion (UEC), a model which induces …