DARPA allocates $36M to spinal cord injury research

Spine

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has awarded $36 million to a selection of universities, startups and nonprofits to advance research on spinal cord injury.

Biomedical engineer Karen Moxon, PhD, of the University of California Davis, will lead the five-year project, as part of DARPA's Bridging the Gap Plus Program.

The project focuses on three technologies, including a near-infrared spectroscopic sensor, which will be developed by spine surgeon Brian Kwon, MD. The sensor is intended to evaluate blood oxygenation and blood flow at the site of injury.

An implantable mean arterial pressure sensor and a spinal cord stimulation and blood pressure regulation system are also being developed. 

The combined systems aim to provide clinicians with data to determine the ideal time to transplant neural stem cells and 3D scaffolds, which are critical after a traumatic injury to the spinal cord.

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