Research Assistant Professor Travis C. Jackson, in the Department of Critical Care Medicine, has received a new R01 from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Dr. Jackson and colleagues will investigate the therapeutic potential of a new neuroprotective approach aimed at improving neurological outcomes following a traumatic brain injury (TBI).
In vitro and in vivo pre-clinical TBI models will be used to test the hypothesis that inhibiting the splicing factor RNA binding motif 5 (RBM5) decreases markers of axonal and cellular damage in injured CNS cells. Furthermore, gene mutation experiments will determine which regions within the RBM5 protein mediate the activation of downstream cell death pathways, and thus will define which functional domains hold the greatest promise for therapeutic targeting using future small-molecule inhibitors. More broadly this project represents the most comprehensive study to date germane to elucidating the role of RBM5 signaling in the brain.
Congratulations to Dr. Jackson on his first R01 award!