Axonal regeneration does not occur in mammals following an injury to the central nervous system (CNS). Previous studies show that a number of factors including chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs) in the post-injury environment inhibit the regenerative process. Moreover, spared axons near the lesion function abnormally due to the loss of their myelin sheath. Besides the inhibitory CNS environment, there is a lack of an intrinsic regenerative response by populations of CNS neurons, particularly in supraspinal neurons, after SCI. Enhancing axonal regeneration or remyelination of spared axons after SCI could both lead to greater recovery of function after SCI. Therefore, my interests lie in understanding the post-injury interactions of the various components of the CNS in particularly axons and oligodendrocytes. I earned my Ph.D. in Anatomy and Cell Biology (summer 2010), working in the labs of Dennis Stelzner and Donna Osterhout at SUNY Upstate Medical University, studying the responses of propriospinal neurons and oligodendrocytes to spinal cord injury. I received my undergraduate degree in biology from the State University of New York College at Oneonta.
