The Department of Neurology research bulletin is updated monthly. Check back for the latest grants, awards, and high-impact publications.
Grants and Awards
Steven Vernino, M.D., Ph.D.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
Professor and Vice-Chair Steven Vernino, M.D., Ph.D., received his R01 grant: “Multimodality Deep Phenotyping of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS)”.
Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a chronic disorder causing disabling symptoms and substantial loss of productivity. Not all POTS patients are the same, and the causes and significance of different subtypes are not known. For example, some patients may have abnormal regulation of their immune system while others may have problems with the response of their muscles to activity. Exercise training has been shown to be a beneficial treatment for POTS, but about 25% of patients are unable to complete the exercise program. Our research study will examine the different types of POTS by systematically and comprehensively studying a large diverse group of patients. This will include careful assessment of symptoms, blood tests, and heart structure as well as a detailed analysis of the muscle response to exercise. This study will be the first to define the full picture of different POTS subtypes and the relationship between these subtypes. Our studies will allow clinicians to better evaluate and individualize treatment and will guide future POTS research.
High-Impact Publications
- Juan Pascual, M.D., Ph.D. & Vikram Jakkamsetti, M.D., Ph.D. and their collaborators published “Impoverished Conceptions of Gene Causation and Therapy in Developmental Neurology” in Pediatric Neurology.
- Bappaditya Ray, M.D. published “Bundled Treatments in Poor-Grade Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: Do They Help?” in Neurocritical Care.
- Elan D. Louis, M.D., M.S published “Chapter 19 - Essential tremor” in the Handbook of Clinical Neurology.
- DaiWai Olson, PhD, RN, FNCS, and his collaborators published “Original Research: 'Do I See Myself?' Exploring the Potential for Online Images to Attract a Diverse Nursing Workforce” in the American Journal of Nursing.
- Elizabeth Maher, M.D., Ph.D. & Robert Bachoo, M.D., Ph.D., and their collaborators published “Optical blood-brain-tumor barrier modulation expands therapeutic options for glioblastoma treatment” in Nature Communications.
- Juan Pascual, M.D., Ph.D., and his collaborators published “Maintenance of pig brain function under extracorporeal pulsatile circulatory control (EPCC)” in Scientific Reports.
- Nancy Monson Ph.D., and her collaborators published “Neuronal binding by antibodies can be influenced by low pH stress during the isolation procedure” in the Journal of Immunological Methods.
- Kimberly Goodspeed, M.D., and her collaborators published “Electroencephalographic (EEG) Biomarkers in Genetic Neurodevelopmental Disorders” in the Journal of Child Neurology.
- Nancy Monson Ph.D., and her collaborators published “Sex-based differences in effector cells of the adaptive immune system during Alzheimer's disease and related dementias” in Neurobiology of Disease.
- Darin Okuda, M.D., and his collaborators published “Impact of COVID-19 vaccination or infection on disease activity in a radiologically isolated syndrome cohort: The VaxiRIS study” in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal.
- Amber Salter, Ph.D., and her collaborators published “Improving the efficiency of clinical trials in multiple sclerosis” in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal.
- Darin Okuda, M.D., and his collaborators published “Teriflunomide and Time to Clinical Multiple Sclerosis in Patients with Radiologically Isolated Syndrome: The TERIS Randomized Clinical Trial” in JAMA Neurology.
- Nancy Monson Ph.D., and her collaborators published “Neuron-binding antibody responses are associated with Black ethnicity in multiple sclerosis during natalizumab treatment” in Brain Communications.