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Neuroimaging and Connectome Analysis as a Diagnostic and Prognostic Biomarker of SCI Induced Neuropathic Pain

Award Number: R01NS134987
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS AND STROKE
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 12/26/2023
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2028

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Neuroimaging and Connectome Analysis as a Diagnostic and Prognostic Biomarker of SCI Induced Neuropathic Pain - The identification of prognostic and diagnostic biomarkers of spinal cord injury (SCI) and SCI induced pain will help to assign SCI patients to the correct treatment and rehabilitation regimes. Chronic neuropathic pain (NP) is a complicated condition after a SCI that often has a lifelong and significant negative impact on life after the injury; therefore, improved pain management is considered a significant and unmet need. NP mechanisms are hetero- geneous and the difficulty in determining their individual contribution to specific pain types may contribute to poor treatment outcomes in this population. The interruption of the spinothalamic pathway to the primary and secondary sensory cortex or associated projections such as alterations of the anterior cingulate cortex and the medial and orbital area of prefrontal cortex after SCI may result in permanent structural and functional reorganization of the brain and spinal cord. Information about NP pathways is critical and can be used as quantitative complementary measures to self-report qualitative pain assessments. Identifying quantitative human NP phenotypes based on multi-modal neuroimaging and connectome measures that reflect specific spinal cord or brain mechanisms of NP is an im- portant goal. Once a pain phenotype can be reliably replicated, its relationship with biomarkers and clinical treatment outcomes can be analyzed, and thereby facilitate translational research and further the mechanistic understanding of individual differences in the pain experience and in clinical trial outcomes. It also would aid in appropriate recruitment of patients into clinical trials. The systematic characterization of structural and functional alterations of the brain based on advanced neuroimaging techniques in people with NP following SCI has not yet been established and development of this the long-term goal of our research agenda. Hence, the first aim of this study is to develop multimodal brain structural and functional connectomes as well as an aggregate pain connectome neuromatrix in uninjured control participants using advanced neuroimaging paradigms. The second aim of this study will determine if connectomics phenotypes alter differently in SCI participants with little or mild (less than 3 on numerical rating scale (NRS)) pain and SCI participants with moderate to severe NP. The identification of changes from the normal connectivity of pain processing regions of the brain that underlie pain development has the potential to uncover potential neural targets for future pain reducing therapies. As such, we aim to develop neuroimaging biomarkers that may diagnose or predict the future development of SCI-induced pain; and finally in aim 3, we will correlate quantitative structural-functional connectome pain neuromatrix in SCI patients with clinical pain measures. A sub aim of this work is to unmask the relationship between allodynia, hyperalgesia and psychosocial aspects of the pain experience after SCI. The progress regarding defining NP phenotypes may lead to more targeted treatments such as pharmacological interventions and neuromodulation (deep brain stimulation (DBS), spinal cord stimulation (SCS) and so on) approaches.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2026 ( Subtotal = $508,059 )
2026	2026	THOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY	1020 WALNUT ST STE 1	PHILADELPHIA	PA	19107	PHILADELPHIA	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	000	3	12/16/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$508,059
														Subtotal = $508,059

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $564,509 )
2025	2025	THOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY	1020 WALNUT ST STE 1	PHILADELPHIA	PA	19107	PHILADELPHIA	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	000	2	4/14/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$564,509
														Subtotal = $564,509

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $576,683 )
2024	2024	THOMAS JEFFERSON UNIVERSITY	1020 WALNUT ST	PHILADELPHIA	PA	19107	PHILADELPHIA	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	000	1	12/27/2023	NEW	$576,683
														Subtotal = $576,683

Grand Total All Awards = $1,649,251

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Neuroimaging and Connectome Analysis as a Diagnostic and Prognostic Biomarker of SCI Induced Neuropathic Pain

Award Number: R01NS134987

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS AND STROKE

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 12/26/2023

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2028

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