On Monday the 24th October the nsif team went to the UCL Institute of Neurology to see the research we are funding in action.
We heard presentations from Prof Geoffrey Raisman, Dr Darqing Li and Prof Ying Li and their team who are all funded by nsif. They told us about their research into a cure for spinal injury, in particular the work on OEC cells in preparation for the next stage of the Walk Again Project. The team’s main aim at the moment is to ensure the success of patients two and three by closely replicating and refining the procedure carried out on Darek Fidyka, to produce the optimum results.
We were also happy to meet David Choi and hear about the work that his team, funded by the Wellcome Trust, are doing on the application of OECs in brachial plexus injury – a nerve injury which causes paralysis to the shoulder, arm and hand.
It was a very positive morning and the team came away feeling more determined than ever to raise funds to ensure the continuation of the vital work being carried out. Often these types of projects do not receive funding from government and larger organisations and need the support of smaller, more specialist foundations to get the work off the ground.
We are honoured to have been funding this ground-breaking work for the last 10 years and believe that the team will continue to be at the cutting edge of this research.
