Grant: Doctoral Award - Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarships

Damage to the nervous system, as occurs after spinal cord injury (SCI), alters the function of the heart and blood vessels. Consequently, people with SCI typically have very low resting heart rate and episodes of extremely high blood pressure, a condition referred to as autonomic dysreflexia. These alterations in the heart and blood vessels may explain why heart disease is the leading cause of death in this population. In the current series of studies I will investigate new methods to improve the control of the heart and blood vessels following SCI. Minocycline is a common antibiotic that is known to preserve nerve cells that are damaged after SCI. By protecting the nerve cell's outer coating, myelin, minocycline may be able to restore the brain's control of the heart and blood vessels. Improving this control is expected to reduce the severity of conditions such as autonomic dysreflexia. I will use a clinically relevant rat model of SCI to determine the effect of minocycline on restoring the brain's control of the heart and blood vessels. In addition, I will examine changes in the arrangement of nerve cells in the spinal cord. I will then translate my findings to the human SCI population where I will conduct a clinical trial to administer minocycline to patients during their recovery from SCI. I will then conduct follow up assessments to determine any improvements in heart and blood vessel function. I expect this research will provide new insights into our understanding of heart and blood vessel function after SCI and ultimately improve the lives of Canadians living with SCI.