Neuroscience 2025 Seminar 7

Supported by the British Neuroscience Association

Alongside pizzas, this week we have Ben Stevens and Dr Jess Kwok

Ben will talk about: Activity and plasticity in chronic SCI: Differential outcomes of high-volume rehabilitation and PNNi treatment.

Ben recently submitted his PhD thesis where he was supervised by Prof Ronaldo Ichiyama, Dr Jessica Kwok and Dr Samit Chakrabarty. His research focused on enhancing locomotor function in chronic spinal cord injury through rehabilitation, removal of inhibitory chondroitin sulphate proteoglycans and their combination.

Dr Kwok will then talk about: Extracellular Matrix Modulation as a Driver of Systemic Plasticity in CNS Repair

The Kwok Lab focuses on understanding and manipulating the extracellular matrix (ECM) to promote neural repair and functional recovery in the central nervous system (CNS). We develop molecular tools to target these mechanisms, aiming to overcome inhibitory environments following injury or disease. In this seminar, I will present our recent findings showing that ECM modulation can induce widespread systemic effects, leading to significant functional improvements after spinal cord injury. We will also explore advances in glycoscience, innovative molecular strategies for ECM manipulation, and their potential to restore function across multiple neural systems.