Wednesday, December 4, 2024 4:30pm to 5pm
Neuroscience Seminar Series - First Year Presentation
Title: Interleaving Tactile Rehabilitation and Vagus Nerve Stimulation Pairings May Influence Sensory Recovery Following Neurological Injury
Speaker:
Rachel Arnold
Student, UT Dallas
Pairing vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) with rehabilitation improves recovery following neurological injury. Preclinical studies have shown recovery is optimal when moderate VNS is paired with rehabilitation in interstimulus intervals of 10 seconds and is ineffective when unpaired. Further studies showed pairing VNS deliveries with rehab events in intervals of 2 seconds results in no recovery. Participants in ongoing clinical trials recover from interleaving VNS and rehab pairings to the same degree seen preclinically with 10 second VNS paired rehab intervals. These differences led us to question whether the interstimulus intervals between rehab events or between VNS deliveries are influencing the biological mechanisms promoting recovery. Here we explore if the intervals of rehab events between VNS deliveries influence recovery by increasing rehab to intervals of 2 seconds with 10 second VNS intervals in a sensory deficit animal model. The results will help us understand why intervals of 2 second VNS paired rehab events failed while success is seen in clinical trials with interleaved pairings. We have demonstrated feasibility in delivering rehab every 2 seconds and VNS deliveries every 10 seconds. Animals at the post-injury time point are exhibiting sensory deficit phenotypes consistent with the preceding studies. By investigating the interstimulus intervals required for recovery, we will gain further understanding of the biological mechanisms that are influenced by VNS paired rehabilitation.
On December 4, 2024 at 4:30 - 5:00PM
In-person in CRA 12.110.
This will also be available on MS Teams.
Meeting ID: 286 858 127 562
Passcode: 7bTV8G
CRA 12.110
Undergraduate Students, Prospective Students, Graduate Students
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