Using realistic brain-injury models to improve recovery after TBI
Official title: Translational Modeling of Brain Injury Rehabilitation to Maximize Recovery.
Funded at Philadelphia VA Medical Center · NIH-11465348 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project builds a realistic large-animal model of traumatic brain injury to find rehabilitation approaches that help people recover thinking, sleep, and daily function after TBI.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Philadelphia VA Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Philadelphia, United States) |
| Project start | February 1, 2021 |
| Project end | January 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| NIH project number | 5IK2RX003376-06 |
| Project ID | NIH-11465348 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People who have had a traumatic brain injury—especially veterans or others with moderate TBI and ongoing problems with cognition, sleep, or fatigue—would be the intended beneficiaries of follow-up clinical work.
✕Less likely to help
People without TBI or those whose problems are unrelated to sleep, fatigue, or cognition are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this animal-focused work.
What this research studies
Researchers will use a pig model that reproduces human-like traumatic brain injuries, including diffuse axonal damage and effects on the brain systems that control consciousness, sleep, and fatigue. The team will apply controlled rotational acceleration to animals and measure brain changes, blood markers, behavior, and recovery patterns to better mirror what happens in people. Findings will be used to identify targets and timing for rehabilitation strategies that could be tested in veterans and civilian patients. Work is led at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center in collaboration with the University of Pennsylvania.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to better, targeted rehabilitation methods that improve thinking, sleep, and daily functioning after traumatic brain injury.
How similar studies have gone: Large-animal (swine) rotational TBI models have been used by other groups to reproduce human-like injuries, but translating those findings into proven rehabilitation improvements remains early and not yet established.
Where this research is happening
-
Philadelphia VA Medical Center
Philadelphia, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: O'donnell, John Charles — Philadelphia VA Medical Center
- Study coordinator: O'donnell, John Charles
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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.