How EV‑D68 can cause spinal cord damage that leads to paralysis
Official title: Delineating the kinetics of spinal pathology in the EV-D68 infected ferret model
Funded at Henry M. Jackson Fdn for the Adv Mil/med · NIH-11270647 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project follows how EV‑D68 infection leads to spinal cord damage that can cause polio‑like paralysis in children, using ferrets to track damage over time.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Henry M. Jackson Fdn for the Adv Mil/med NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Bethesda, United States) |
| Project start | February 1, 2025 |
| Project end | January 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $186,441 |
| NIH project number | 5R21AI190739-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11270647 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children who have had or are at risk for EV‑D68–related acute flaccid myelitis would be the eventual beneficiaries, though this grant uses animal models rather than enrolling patients.
✕Less likely to help
People without EV‑D68 exposure, adults with paralysis from other causes, or patients with long‑standing irreversible spinal damage are unlikely to directly benefit from this animal‑model study.
What this research studies
EV‑D68 is a reemerging virus that can cause acute flaccid myelitis (AFM), a polio‑like paralysis in children. Researchers will develop and use an immunocompetent ferret model to mimic the spinal cord disease seen in children. They will track spinal damage over time and study the role of spinal glial (support) cells in driving that damage. The goal is to better explain why some infections lead to paralysis and to point toward targets for future treatments or prevention.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal how EV‑D68 damages the spinal cord and help guide development of treatments or vaccines to prevent AFM in children.
How similar studies have gone: Previous neonatal and immunodeficient mouse studies have provided useful clues but do not fully replicate AFM in children, so the ferret model is a relatively new and unproven approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Henry M. Jackson Fdn for the Adv Mil/med
Bethesda, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Mattapallil, Joseph John — Henry M. Jackson Fdn for the Adv Mil/med
- Study coordinator: Mattapallil, Joseph John
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.