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Chasing A Cure For Spinal Cord Injuries

CHASING A CURE FOR SPINAL CORD INJURIES In labs and hospitals around the world, scientists are developing treatments that will help paraplegics and quadriplegics do things no one thought possible: GROW NERVE CELLS НEAL TAKE STEPS AGAIN | THE QUESTION IS NOT WHETHER EFFECTIVE | TREATMENTS WILL BE FOUND, BUT WHEN THEY WILL BE FOUND. PROF. DR. JAN SCHWAB, NEUROLOGIST, SCIENTIFIC DIRECTOR OF WINGS FOR LIFE HERE IS WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT SPINAL CORD INJURY WHO HAS SPINAL CORD INJURIES? IT CAN HAPPEN TO ANYONE, ANYWHERE The main causes are accidents in everyday situations. TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS FALLING ACCIDENTS OTHER CAUSES 17% 50% 3 MILLION PEOPLE WORLDWIDE. 275,000 PEOPLE IN THE U.S. 24% Minimum 250,000 cases diagnosed each year. Approx. 12,000 cases diagnosed each year. SPORTS 9% THE CHALLENGES IN FINDING A CURE SPINAL CORD HEALING DEPENDS ON SEVERAL THINGS HAPPENING IN CONCERT: Building a bridge across the 44 injury site to support the nerves. IN MOTORSPORTS WE COUNT IN SECONDS, IN MEDICAL RESEARCH YOU COUNT IN YEARS. BUT BOTH DISCIPLINES DEMAND AMBITION AND STRONG PARTNERS IN ORDER TO REACH THE GOAL. Continuously blocking a multitude of the spinal cord's natural "stop signs" that are sending out messages to put a halt to the healing. Identifying pharmaceutical products that keep the secondary damage from spreading. DAVID COULTHARD, EX-FORMULA ONE RACING DRIVER AND WINGS FOR LIFE AMBASSADOR Stimulating nerve cell growth. Axons, which are nerve fibres tasked with Each of these mysteries has been addressed transmitting information to different in one way or another. Now researchers need neurons, muscles and glands, grow to figure out how to do all of them at once. slowly and have to bridge large What combinations of the different damaged areas. therapies will work with humans? The only way to find out is by testing different combinations, watching for progress, looking for side effects - and testing again. Supporting cell growth and survival, otherwise known as trophic support. It will take research centers and hospitals all over the world conducting thousands of Stimulating remyelination, which is the tests, and it will take time and money. process of creating a fatty, axon-enwrapping THIS IS WHERE WE ALL STEP IN. sheath that serves to cover and protect the WE CAN HELP SPEED UP THIS PROCESS. nerves. It is essential for properly transmitting signals. PROGRESS IS BEING MADE The developments being demonstrated by researchers around the globe provide strong hope that treatment options are closer than they have ever been. Below are a few promising examples of Wings for Life-funded research projects. NEUROPROTECTION There are encouraging developments on the front of neuroprotection, which refers to the goal of protecting against neuronal injury or degeneration in the Central Nervous System (CNS) following acute disorders. The first clinical trials with drugs have shown neuroprotective effects starting in patients. Also, Jan Schwab (Charité Berlin) recently identified a so-called "immune paralysis," which is the main cause of death and barrier to neurological recovery after a spinal cord injury. AXONAL GROWTH AND AXON REGENERATION CELL BASED THERAPIES A new and exciting field is the transplantation of stem cells into spinal cord injury. In preclinical Neuronal regeneration and axon regrowth in studies, promising results were seen in rodents by grafting stem cells. Many questions still the spinal cord was long thought to be impossible. Researchers now could decipher molecules that function as "stop signs" for regeneration in the tissue. remain to be solved. The Wings for Life Foundation funds projects in this area of research, aiming to use this knowledge in clinics. One of these stop signs is the protein Nogo-A, first described by Martin Schwab, Zurich.* REMYELINATION Also Stephen Strittmatter from Yale could Spinal cord injury is followed by the death of oligodendrocytes, which are cells generating the myelin sheaths. "Nude" axons cannot properly transmit signals. show that blocking the binding of molecules, acting as stop signs to the Nogo receptor, allows for better axonal sprouting. In addition Zhigang He from Harvard Therefore, remyelination is very important for functional recovery. Among other ways, researchers take on this challenge by the transplantation of myelinating cells. Also, Dr. Michael Fehling's team from Toronto explores the potential of induced pluripotent stem cells on remyelination in spinal cord injury. an cellular molecule, PTEN, also acting as a stop signal for regeneration of axons. Inhibiting PTEN results in substantial axon regeneration in pre-clinical experiments. *not funded by the Wings for Life Foundation TAKE THE FIRST STEP WITH US JOIN THE WINGS FOR LIFE WORLD RUN. RUN FOR THOSE WHO CAN'T WHAT IS IT? On May 4, 2014, at precisely 6 am EST/3 am PST, more than 100,000 runners around the world will simultaneously surge across starting lines in local areas for one of the largest running events ever staged. There is no traditional finish line. There is no set distance to run or a set time to beat. Participants will be running with and against runners from around the world, outracing a finish line that pursues you - THE CATCHER CAR. HOW DOES IT WORK? YY A half hour after the race starts, The cars start out driving When a runner gets caught, an identical Catcher Car leaves 15 mph and slowly they climb aboard a shuttle bus the start of each of the 38 events accelerate each hour. that takes them back to the around the world. starting line celebration. The Catcher Car continues driving until the last man and woman are caught in each race city. The last man and woman caught in the world will be crowned Global Champions of the Wings for Life World Run. WHAT IT MEANS Wings for Life gives 100% of the money raised by the World Run to research into finding a cure for spinal cord injury. Wings for Life is a not-for-profit spinal cord research foundation. Its mission is to find a cure for spinal cord injury. The foundation funds world-class scientific research and clinical trials around the globe aimed at healing the injured spinal cord. Support us in achieving our goal. USA LOCATIONS SUNDAY, MAY 4, 2014 DENVER COLORADO SANTA CLARITA. CALIFORNIA SUNRISE FLORIDA ALONG WITH SIMULTANEOUS RACES IN MORE THAN 30 COUNTRIES. | WE ARE EXPLORING EVERY AVENUE THAT COULD MAKE OUR VISION A REALITY. PROF. DR. LUDWIG AIGNER, SCIENTIFIC DIRECTOR OF WINGS FOR LIFE BE A PART OF A HISTORICAL EVENT. RUN FOR THOSE WHO CAN'T. HOW YOU CAN PARTICIPATE YOU HAVE UNTIL SUNDAY, APRIL 20 TO REGISTER FOR ONE OF THE RUNS VIA WWW.WINGSFORLIFEWORLDRUN.COM/REGISTRATION WINGS FOR LIFE WORLDRUN

Chasing A Cure For Spinal Cord Injuries

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In labs and hospitals around the world, scientists are developing treatments that will help paraplegics and quadriplegics do things no one thought possible. The Wings for Life Foundation was founded t...

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Wings For Life World Run

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Health
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