Technology-driven combinatorial therapy to rewire the spinal cord after injury (ReWire)

REWIRE将结合创新的翻译神经技术和康复干预措施，修复和恢复脊髓(SC)损伤后的神经功能。拟议的研究计划将使下一代科学家拥有独特的技能，为瘫痪患者开发颠覆性治疗解决方案。最近的技术突破引发了旨在恢复脊髓损伤(SCI)后功能的治疗概念的范式转变。新型药物输送系统和生物材料桥已被设计用于减少继发性损伤和瘢痕形成，刺激和引导跨病变部位的再生神经纤维，并促进与完整组织的功能重新连接。此外，神经调节疗法可以重新激活脊髓损伤下的脊髓回路，使慢性瘫痪患者重新获得对行走的自愿控制。与康复相结合，在没有神经调节的情况下，神经恢复得到了促进，这表明在临床前模型中显示了SC的重新连接。为了绕过损伤，神经调节与大脑信号联系起来，通过使用电神经刺激和机器人系统来重新建立对脊髓回路的皮质控制。机器人技术的进步通过诱导新的自然“有线”连接显著增强了神经康复的影响。REWIRE的目的是在多个博士项目的框架内利用所有这些技术和治疗突破，这些项目将持续互动，汇聚成有效的脊髓损伤联合治疗方法。REWIRE将专注于三个相互交织的目标：i)建立一个国际、跨学科和跨部门的教育网络，ii)建立一个SCI临床数据平台，以及iii)将欧洲定位于SCI治疗的前沿。

ReWIRE will combine innovative translational neurotechnologies and rehabilitation interventions for the repair and restoration of neurological functions following injury of the spinal cord (SC). The proposed research program will equip next-generation scientists with unique skills to develop disruptive therapeutic solutions for patients with paralysis. Recent technological breakthroughs have triggered a paradigm shift in the conception of therapies aimed to restore function after spinal cord injury (SCI). Novel drug delivery systems and biomaterial bridges have been engineered to reduce secondary injury and scarring, to stimulate and guide regenerating nerve fibres across the lesion site, and to promote functional reconnection with intact tissue. Additionally, neuromodulation therapies can reactivate spinal circuits below a SCI, allowing people with chronic paralysis to regain voluntary control of walking. In conjunction with rehabilitation, neurological recovery was promoted that persisted without neuromodulation, suggesting a rewiring of the SC as demonstrated in preclinical models. To bypass an injury, neuromodulation has been linked to brain signals to re-establish corticalcontrol over spinal circuits by employing electrical nerve stimulation and robotic systems. Advances in robotics are significantly augmenting the impact of neurorehabilitation by inducing new natural "wired" connections. The aim of ReWIRE is to leverage all these technical and therapeutic breakthroughs in the framework of multiple PhD projects that will continuously interact to converge toward effective combinatorial treatments for SCI. ReWIRE will focus on three inter-woven objectives: i) establish an international, interdisciplinary, and intersectoral educational network, ii) build an SCI clinical data platform, and, iii) position Europe at the forefront of therapy for SCI.