Press release | 12 December 2016
Support for translational research: Europe wide cooperation on
spinal cord injury research receives 1.34 Million Euros grant
Six European research teams including Dr. Michell Reimer and his team at the
DFG-Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD) - Cluster of Excellence at
the TU Dresden, received a 1.34 Million Euros ERA NET NEURON Grant for their
research on spinal cord injury funded by the European Commission. The funding
will start in 2017.
Dresden. Spinal cord injury results from trauma to the vertebral column, usually caused
by accidents during sport activities or driving. Injury of the spinal cord is a devastating
condition for the individuals who suffer not only from paralysis but also chronic pain
and impairment of bodily functions such as bowel and bladder control. In addition to
the physical aspects of this condition, the psychological impact is tremendous.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO)*, as many as 500,000 people
suffer a spinal cord injury each year*.
Humans do not regain spinal cord function after injury. However, zebrafish have the
remarkable ability to functionally recover from spinal cord injury. They repair injured
connections, replace damaged motor neurons and oligodendrocytes, enabling them to
regain full movement within four weeks after injury. This grant now allows six
European partnering institutions from Germany, France, Great Britain, Poland and
Belgium to use this tropical fish to identify novel targets and mechanisms to improve
the functional recovery after a spinal cord injury, test these targets in mammals and
translate the findings into the human spinal cord cells. Along with the CRTD, the
collaborator team includes researchers from the French National Institute of Health
and Medical Research (Inserm), the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden,
the Free University of Brussels (VUB) and the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology
of the Polish Academy of Sciences. The complete project is coordinated by the
University of Edinburgh (UK).
Alongside this research, the collaborators work on developing new techniques to
analyze changes within the spinal cord and tools to modify identified targets. “This
unique consortium of six groups in five countries combines laboratories that would not
have been able to work together outside of the European Research Area Network for
Neuroscience Research (ERA-NET NEURON) funding program. It is truly exciting to be
part of this team and I am certain that our work will have a significant impact on spinal
CRTD / DFG-Forschungszentrum für Regenerative Therapien Dresden
Exzellenzcluster / TU Dresden
Fetscherstraße 105
01307 Dresden
Internet
http://www.crt-dresden.de
-2-
cord injury research”, Dr. Reimer explains. The collaborators hope their findings will
reveal new therapies that could improve the lives of patients with spinal cord injury.
The study is funded by the European Commission through the European Research
Area Network for Neuroscience Research (ERA-NET NEURON) and co-funded through
national funding agencies. Lead researcher Professor Catherina Becker, Director of the
University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Neuroregeneration, said: “This exciting project
brings together leading experts from across Europe to explore the intrinsic capacity of
the spinal cord to repair itself. We hope this will eventually lead to urgently needed
therapies for people who have damage to their spinal cord, either from disease or
injury.”
Before becoming a research group leader at the CRTD in 2014, biologist Michell
Reimer worked for five years as a Post Doctoral Fellow at the Centre for
Neuroregeneration and the Centre for Cognitive and Neural Systems at the University
of Edinburgh (UK). From 2005-2008, Michell Reimer completed his PhD in the field of
neuroscience at the Centre for Neuroregeneration, University of Edinburgh and the
University Hamburg, Germany.
*http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2013/spinal-cord-injury-20131202/en/
Research group on the CRTD website
http://www.crt-dresden.de/research/research-groups/core-groups/crtd-coregroups/regulation-of-developmental-and-regenerative-processes-in-the-spinal-cord/
Publications
Barreiro-Iglesias A., Mysiak, K.S., Scott, A.L., Reimer, M.M., Yang, Y., Becker, C.G., Becker, T. (2015) Serotonin
Promotes Development and Regeneration of Spinal Motor Neurons in Zebrafish. (Cell Reports, 13(5): 924-932)
Wishart T.M.*, Mutsaers C.A.*, Riessland M.*, Reimer M.M.*, Hunter G.*, Hannam M.L., Eaton S.L., Fuller H.R.,
Roche S.L., Somers E., Morse R., Young P.J., Lamont D.J., Hammerschmidt M., Joshi A., Hohenstein P., Morris G.E.,
Parson S.H., Skehel P.A., Becker T., Robinson I.M., Becker C.G., Wirth B., Gillingwater T.H. (2014) Dysregulation of
ubiquitin homeostasis and β-catenin signaling promote spinal muscular atrophy. (J Clin Invest. 2014 Mar 3. pii: 71318.
doi: 10.1172/JCI71318.) * These authors contributed equally
Reimer M.M., Norris A., Patani R., Zhong Z., Ohnmacht J., Dias T.B., Kuscha V., Scott A.L., Chen Y., Frazer S.L., Wyatt
C., Higashijma S., Patton L., Panula P., Chandran S., Becker T., Becker C.G.(2013) Dopamine from the brain promotes
spinal motor neuron generation during development and adult regeneration. Developmental Cell, Volume 25, Issue 5,
478-491
Reimer M.M., Kuscha V., Wyatt C., Sörensen I., Frank R.E., Knüwer M., Becker T., Becker C.G. (2009) Sonic hedgehog
is a polarized signal for motor neuron regeneration in adult zebrafish.
J Neurosci. 29:15073-82.
Reimer M.M., Sörensen I., Frank R.E., Chong, L., Becker C.G.*, Becker T.* (2008)
Motor neuron regeneration in adult zebrafish. J Neurosci. 28:8510-16.
CRTD / DFG-Forschungszentrum für Regenerative Therapien Dresden
Exzellenzcluster / TU Dresden
Fetscherstrasse 105
01307 Dresden
Internet
http://www.crt-dresden.de
-3-
Press Contact
Franziska Clauß, M.A.
Press Officer
Phone: +49 351 458 82065
E-Mail: [email protected]
Founded in 2006, the DFG Research Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD),
Cluster of Excellence at the TU Dresden has now passed the second phase of the Excellence
Initiative which aims to promote top-level research and improve the quality of German
universities and research institutions. The goal of the CRTD is to explore the human body's
regenerative potential and to develop completely new, regenerative therapies for hitherto
incurable diseases. The key areas of research include haematology and immunology, diabetes,
neurodegenerative diseases, and bone regeneration. At present, eight professors and ten group
leaders are working at the CRTD – integrated into an interdisciplinary network of 87 members
at seven different institutions within Dresden. In addition, 21 partners from industry are
supporting the network. The synergies in the network allow for a fast translation of results from
basic research to clinical applications. www.crt-dresden.de
Dr. Michell M. Reimer © CRTD
CRTD / DFG-Forschungszentrum für Regenerative Therapien Dresden
Exzellenzcluster / TU Dresden
Fetscherstrasse 105
01307 Dresden
Countries of involved European partners © CRTD
Internet
http://www.crt-dresden.de