Spinal cord associative plasticity (SCAP) is a combined cortical and spinal electrical stimulation technique developed to induce recovery of arm and hand function in spinal cord injury. The proposed study will advance understanding of SCAP, which is critical to its effective translation to human therapy. The purpose of the study is to: 1. Determine whether signaling through the spinal cord to the muscles can be strengthened by electrical stimulation. 2. Improve our understanding of the spinal cord and how it produces movement. 3. Determine whether spinal surgery to relieve pressure on the spinal cord can improve its function. Aim 1 is designed to advance mechanistic understanding of spinal cord associative plasticity (SCAP). Aim 2 will determine whether SCAP increases spinal cord excitability after the period of repetitive pairing. In rats, SCAP augments muscle activation for hours after just 5 minutes of paired stimuli. Whereas Aims 1 and 2 focused on the effects of paired stimulation in the context of uninjured spinal cord, Aim 3 assesses whether paired stimulation can be effective across injured cord segments. Aim 3 will incorporate the experiments from Aim 1 and 2 but in people with SCI, either traumatic or pre-operative patients with myelopathy in non-invasive experiments, or targeting myelopathic segments in intraoperative segments.
Cervical Spinal Cord Injury, Tetraplegia/Tetraparesis, Cervical Myelopathy
Spinal cord associative plasticity (SCAP) is a combined cortical and spinal electrical stimulation technique developed to induce recovery of arm and hand function in spinal cord injury. The proposed study will advance understanding of SCAP, which is critical to its effective translation to human therapy. The purpose of the study is to: 1. Determine whether signaling through the spinal cord to the muscles can be strengthened by electrical stimulation. 2. Improve our understanding of the spinal cord and how it produces movement. 3. Determine whether spinal surgery to relieve pressure on the spinal cord can improve its function. Aim 1 is designed to advance mechanistic understanding of spinal cord associative plasticity (SCAP). Aim 2 will determine whether SCAP increases spinal cord excitability after the period of repetitive pairing. In rats, SCAP augments muscle activation for hours after just 5 minutes of paired stimuli. Whereas Aims 1 and 2 focused on the effects of paired stimulation in the context of uninjured spinal cord, Aim 3 assesses whether paired stimulation can be effective across injured cord segments. Aim 3 will incorporate the experiments from Aim 1 and 2 but in people with SCI, either traumatic or pre-operative patients with myelopathy in non-invasive experiments, or targeting myelopathic segments in intraoperative segments.
Spinal Cord Associative Plasticity Study
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Bronx Veterans Medical Research Foundation, Inc, New York, New York, United States, 10029
Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States, 10032
Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York, United States, 10065
Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.
For general information about clinical research, read Learn About Studies.
18 Years to 80 Years
ALL
Yes
Columbia University,
Jason B Carmel, M.D., Ph.D., PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR, Columbia University
2026-06-30