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Top Scientists in the Spinal
Cord World
Click a Scientist
Listed below are different
scientists (they are not listed in any particular order)
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Dr. Hans Keirstead Ph.D.
Dr. Hans S. Keirstead is an Associate Professor at the
Reeve-Irvine Research Center, and Co-Director of the
Stem Cell Research Center at the University of
California, Irvine. The Canadian-born neuroscientist
received his PhD from the University of British Columbia
in Vancouver, Canada. His PhD thesis concerned his
invention of a novel method for regenerating damaged
spinal cords, and formed the basis of several worldwide
patents as well as the formation of a company in 1999.
This work constituted the first demonstration of
functional regeneration of the injured adult spinal
cord, and for his achievements he received the Cameron
Award for the outstanding PhD thesis in Canada. Dr.
Keirstead then moved to Cambridge England, where he
conducted 4 years of Post-Doctoral studies at the
University of Cambridge furthering his studies of spinal
cord injury and beginning studies of multiple sclerosis.
He was awarded Canadian and British Fellowships to
support this work. He received the distinct honor of
election to two senior academic posts, Fellow of the
Governing Body of Downing College, and Senate Member of
the University of Cambridge, and was the youngest member
to be elected to those positions. In 2000, Dr.
Keirstead joined the Reeve-Irvine Research Center at the
University of California at Irvine.
The
Reeve-Irvine Research Center, founded by the late
Christopher Reeve and philanthropist Joan Irvine, is a
leading center for spinal cord injury research. Dr.
Keirstead directs a large team investigating the
cellular biology and treatment of spinal cord trauma,
research that also has significance for multiple
sclerosis and other diseases of the nervous system. In
order to bring his treatments to clinical trials, he has
founded or partnered with several biotechnology
companies to fund and conduct pre-clinical and clinical
development |
. Dr.
Keirstead was recently awarded the Distinguished
Assistant Professor of UCI Award, the UCI Academic
Senate's highest honor, and was thereafter promoted to
Associate Professor with tenure. In 2005, he was awarded
the UCI Innovation Award for innovative research leading
to corporate and clinical development.
Dr. Keirstead has testified at Federal and California
Senate Hearings on several occasions regarding the
potential of stem cells, is an avid scientific
correspondent for public education, is on the Editorial
Board of 4 major journals, was an advisor to the CA
government on stem cell policy, was a Scientific
Advisory Committee Member of the California Stem Cell
Initiative that authored Proposition 71, and maintains
working relationships with several stem cell companies,
venture capital groups, and government economic
development offices in the United States, Sweden and
Norway.
Dr. Keirstead is also Vice Chancellor of Academic
Development at UDECOM (University of Community
Development, in French) situated in Guinea, Africa.
UDECOM grants Bachelors and PhD degrees for community
development in rural Africa. Dr. Keirstead leads several
efforts to develop the university and improve the
quality of life for those in the surrounding
communities.
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Dr. Huang
Hongyun
Department of
Neurosurgery
Chaoyang Hospital
Capital University of Medical Sciences Beijing, China
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Dr. Darwin Prockop
Ph.D. Darwin Prockop,
M.D., Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry
Director, Center for Gene Therapy,
Tulane University Health Sciences Center |
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Dr. Geoff Raisman
National Institue
for Medical Research
Head
of Division Neurobiology |
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Dr. John McDonald M.D.,
Ph.D.
Dr. McDonald graduated from the University of Illinois,
Champaign Urbana in 1985 with Bachelor’s of
Science degree, magna cum laude, in
Neuroscience. From there he matriculated at
the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where
he began a combined M.D./Ph.D. program in
the Medical Scientists Training Program (MSTP)
that he completed in 1992. While pursuing
his advanced degrees, Dr. McDonald completed
a fellowship in Neurology at the Johns
Hopkins University School of Medicine and
served as visiting scientist at Eli Lilly
and Co in Indianapolis, IN. After receiving
his M.D. and his doctorate, Dr. McDonald
completed an internship in preliminary
medicine at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Ann
Arbor, MI. From 1993-1996, he completed his
postgraduate training in adult Neurology at
St. Louis’ Barnes Hospital and Washington
University School of Medicine. Following his
residency, Dr. McDonald joined the
Washington University faculty in the
Department of Neurology as an instructor in
1997, promoted to assistant professor of
Neurology at Washington University School of
Medicine. He also held co-assistant
professorships in the School’s Departments
of Neurological Surgery and Anatomy and
Neurobiology.
In 1998, Dr. McDonald was named Medical
Director of the Spinal Cord
Neurorehabilitative Unit at Barnes-Jewish
Hospital in St. Louis and Section Head of
Spinal Cord Injury Program at Washington
University. There he spearheaded development
of what is now a leading spinal cord injury
neuralrestoration program. It was there that
he developed the “activity-based
restoration” (ABR) therapies designed to
help patients with long-term spinal cord
injuries recover sensation, movement and
independence; the therapy approached
publically acknowledged as producing the
substantial and delayed recovery of
actor/activist Christopher Reeve.
Dr. McDonald joined Kennedy Kennedy Krieger
Institute in 2004 in order to launch a
brand-new spinal cord rehabilitation and
research program with a focus on pediatric
paralysis, a program that will become the
only of its kind in the world. Dr. McDonald
also holds a primary appointment as
Associate Professor in the Department of
Neurology at Johns Hopkins University School
of Medicine with co-appointments in Physical
Medicine and Rehabilitation and Neuroscience
departments.
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Dr. McDonald sits on the advisory boards
of two companies, Restorative Therapies, Inc. of
Baltimore, MD and BioAxone of Montreal, Canada. He is
the present Chairman of the Spinal Cord Injury Research
Program Advisory Board at the University of Missouri,
Columbia and holds positions on the New York State SCI
Research board, and the Philadelphia Shriner’s Hospital
Medical Advisory Board.
Recent professional honors include being named Medical
Director of the Year by insurer HealthSouth, receiving
the SCI Research Inspiration Award from the Sam Schmidt
Foundation and receiving the Reeve Research for Freedom
Award from Gateway to a Cure.
Dr. McDonald’s research interests
focus on the development of interventions to reduce
spinal cord injury, promote remyelination, enhance
regeneration and encourage recovery of function. In
addition, Dr. McDonald is interested in studying the
biology of embryonic stem cells, neural progenitor
cells, mechanisms of oligodendrocyte death and
glutamate excitotoxicity, mechanisms regulating
myelination and the ontogeny of excitatory amino
acid and related neurotransmitter pathways in the
brain and their relationship to neurological
disease.
Dr. McDonald also actively leads industry
multi-center clinical trials in spinal cord injury
repair, having completed 6 trials to date including
the first human stem cell transplantation study with
the company Diacrin. In addition to the completion
of an ongoing project examining the efficacy of
activity-based restoration in 60 adult patients with
spinal cord injuries, Dr. McDonald and his team at
the International Center for Spinal Cord Injury will
soon launch a large prospective multi-center trial
evaluating the efficacy of these therapies in
pediatric patients in collaboration with the
Philadephia Shriner’s Hospital.
Dr. McDonald’s research is increasingly focusing on
approaches to regeneration and restoration of
function in spinal cord injury and other disorders
of paralysis using activity-base therapies. Such
focus includes other regenerative approaches that
have the potential of being translated into human
therapies in the near-term.
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"Planned or ongoing clinical trials regarding spinal cord
injury. Update March 2006. Draft March 29, 2006"
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Wings for Life - Check out their Top 11 Funded 2006 Researchers
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