Dr. Corbin Bachmeier recently was awarded two contracts by the Department of Defense to investigate the role of the brain vasculature in neurological diseases following Traumatic Brain Injury. These new projects will build upon his prior work with the Department of Veterans Affairs, which found that certain cells associated with the brain vasculature progressively degenerate in the chronic stages following head trauma. Under normal conditions, these cells have important roles in supporting neuronal function and removing toxic proteins from the brain. The focus of the new projects is to identify therapeutics that rejuvenate the injured cerebrovascular cells in order to facilitate the elimination of toxic agents from the brain and improve overall brain function in the aftermath of head trauma. Dr. Bachmeier’s projects will continue over the next three years, and he will be supported in these endeavors by Dr. Maxwell Eisenbaum, who graduated from the Institute Ph.D. program earlier this year.
