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Plenary #5- WFL Lecture

Tracks
Plenary Room: F1+F2+F3
Friday, October 10, 2025
14:40 - 15:30
Plenary Room F1+F2+F3

Details

Recovery from any spinal cord injury – and its attendant neurodegenerative processes – can follow a complicated trajectory spanning several years after injury. The ability to track injury-induced structural changes across the neuroaxis provides the opportunity to quantify pathological processes driving disability and recovery-related plasticity. During my talk I will present evidence from quantitative MRI to highlight the role of preserved tissue bridges, and the extent of progressive volume, myelin and iron changes along the projections of the corticospinal tract. Moreover, I will show how serial myelin- and iron-sensitive multiparametric mapping during a period of intensive motor skill acquisition revealed temporally and spatially distributed, performance-related microstructural changes in the grey and white matter across the motor system in SCI patients. Applying these selected MRI biomarkers to the recently concluded NISCI trial revealed indirect evidence for the neuroprotective and sprouting capabilities of anti-Nogo-A antibody treatment, as demonstrated by faster rates of tissue preservation near the injury epicenter and slower progression of remote spinal cord atrophy, respectively. These advances not only provide unprecedented insights into the biology of injury and repair but also lay the foundation for developing imaging biomarkers that can support patient stratification, monitor therapeutic response, and inform clinical trial design in spinal cord injury.


Presenter (if the session has co-presenters, they will be listed in the APP)

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Mr Patrick Freund
Chair In Paraplegiology
University of Zürich

Navigating Spinal Cord Injury: From Degeneration to Recovery and Treatment

Biography

I completed my doctorate in biology at Fribourg University in 2008, followed by a doctorate in medicine from Zürich in 2014. In 2018, I was honored to receive the SNF Eccellenza Professorship at the University of Zurich, and in 2020, I was grateful to be awarded the Schellenberg Prize. By 2023, I took on the role of Professor of Experimental Imaging of the Spinal Cord at the University of Zurich. By 2024, I was elected the chair of Paraplegiology at the University of Zurich. Drawing from my background in medicine and neuroscience, I am deeply interested in the complex statistical analysis of imaging data. My group aims to explore spinal cord injury beyond traditional clinical and neurophysiological assessments using neuroimaging techniques. Specifically, our research focuses on understanding the functional and structural changes throughout the central nervous system following focal spinal cord lesions. Through interdisciplinary collaboration, I strive to advance imaging technologies and conduct studies on therapeutic training and interventions. I have secured approximately 17 million CHF in funding as a principal investigator and work package leader. In addition to my primary role, I hold the titles of Honorary Professor at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging within the Queen Square UCL Institute of Neurology, and an honorary senior scientist position at the Department of Neurophysics at the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig. These affiliations allow me to contribute to collaborative research efforts in neuroimaging and spinal cord injury studies.

Moderator

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Armin Curt
Prof
University Of Zurich

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