SCI-ISIG WEBINAR
19 SEPTEMBER // 12:00 PM ET
How Microbiome Research Can Change Spinal Cord Injury Care
Presenter:
Ceren Yarar-Fisher, PT, PhD
Vice Chair of Research, Dept. Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Director of Clinical Research, Belford Center for Spinal Cord Injury
Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Ohio State University
Pro-SCI laboratory’s (https://www.pro-sci.science/) work in microbiome is impactful and fun and all possible because of our diverse group of scientists (with backgrounds in neuroscience, rehabilitation, nutrition, metabolism, exercise science, microbiology, and biostatistics) working together to answer complex questions (How does SCI-induced distorted gut microbiome composition impact metabolic and bowel health outcomes after SCI, can we identify therapeutic targets such as diet, probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, or fecal microbiome transplants to prevent secondary health complications ) in SCI. We integrate SCI demographics, clinical and experimental data, metagenomics, and metabolomics into a comprehensive database to facilitate more complete health pictures, thus allowing the best treatment and prevention strategies for the acute and chronic stages of SCI.
Learning Objectives
Learn about…
- Fecal transplant studies in obesity and diabetes –
- Pathogenic changes in gut microbiome post-spinal cord injury (SCI) –
- Diet impact on SCI microbiome –
- Future of microbiome therapeutics
About Ceren Yara-Fisher
Dr. Ceren Yarar-Fisher is Vice Chair of Research in the Dept. Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Director of Clinical Research at the Belford Center for Spinal Cord Injury, and Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the Ohio State University. Previously, she was an Associate Professor at the Dept. Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation of the University of Alabama. Her translational research laboratory focuses on understanding the pathophysiology of traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) in the acute and chronic stages, aiming at developing novel dietary and rehabilitation strategies to improve neuro-recovery, metabolism, and microbiome composition. As such, Dr. Yarar-Fisher’s lab is currently developing and testing therapeutic diets and electrical stimulation programs to evaluate new strategies to prevent neuronal death, promote recovery and function in acute SCI stages, improve body composition, gut microbiome composition and skeletal muscle, metabolic and bowel health in SCI chronic stages. She has led and collaborated on many projects resulting in numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. She has received several NIH and NIDILRR funding to support her research in SCI, nutrition, and microbiome. She was the program director and site-specific project principal investigator for the UAB SCI Model Systems from 2016-2022. Her contribution to high-quality, well-funded research has been recognized both institutionally and internationally. Junior Chamber International selected her as one of the 10 Outstanding Young Persons of Turkey for her work in Academic leadership and/or accomplishment. She served two years as Treasurer, Chair-Elect, and Chair in the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM) in the SCI-Special Interest Group. She has recently been selected as a recipient of ACRM Fellowship. She has had the privilege of mentoring various students and trainees, including high school students, medical students, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residents, physical therapy students, doctoral students, and post-doctoral trainees. The students she has mentored are recognized for their research achievements via prestigious SCI research funding and academic scholarships.
