# Targeting skeletal muscle to improve metabolic health in individuals with spinal cord injury

> **NIH NIH K01** · UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM · 2021 · $85,164

## Abstract

SUMMARY
The proposed research project examines the impact of early utilization of a novel neuromuscular electrical
stimulation (NMES) program on skeletal muscle metabolism and overall metabolic health in individuals with
sub-acute, complete spinal cord injuries (SCI).
Background: Individuals with SCI live longer than before and live to an age where metabolic disorders become
highly prevalent. Due to loss of mobility and severe skeletal muscle atrophy, obesity, glucose intolerance, and
peripheral insulin resistance develop soon after the onset of SCI. These abnormalities are thought to contribute
to the increased diabetes disease risk and accelerated aging process in the SCI population. As a result of
these trends, overall burden of complications, economic impact and reduced quality of life are increasing. Until
there are effective treatments for SCI, it is imperative to develop effective interventions to mitigate metabolic
disorders that develop in individuals with SCI. There is a lack of experienced clinicians and researchers who
have expertise on metabolic health and SCI. Additionally, there is a lack of adequate early interventions to
prevent or reduce the degree of metabolic dysfunction that follows injury.
Implications: The growing population and increased age of individuals with SCI calls for novel and
interdisciplinary rehabilitation approaches to care in order to reduce the economic burden and enhance the
quality of life.
Next Steps: Interdisciplinary rehabilitation researchers are needed to lead the investigations necessary to
address the aforementioned problems and challenges. As a candidate for this training and research proposal, I
am uniquely trained and motivated to commit my career to addressing the challenges associated with the
current trends. My prior research and clinical training ideally position me for an independent research career.
During my doctoral and post-doctoral training, I was actively engaged in research on the development of
exercise and nutrition interventions to improve musculoskeletal and metabolic health in individuals with SCI. I
bring to this research a diverse training background in physical therapy and rehabilitation, human physiology,
and skeletal muscle biology as indicated by my publication record. My postdoctoral experience fostered my
abilities to direct truly translational research by extending clinical research experiences to mechanistic studies
in skeletal muscle and molecular biology. The specific focus of my work that I will build upon involved
understanding the effects of NMES on activity of intracellular signaling pathways for glucose utilization and
muscle growth. I conducted all aspects of SCI projects – from subject recruitment, to clinical studies, to
molecular and histological assays in the laboratory. My postdoctoral experiments revealed novel findings,
some of which are detailed in the Research Strategy, providing strong support for the hypotheses of my
proposal. The early results of thes...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10214648
- **Project number:** 5K01HD087463-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM
- **Principal Investigator:** Ceren Yarar-Fisher
- **Activity code:** K01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $85,164
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-07-14 → 2022-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10214648

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10214648, Targeting skeletal muscle to improve metabolic health in individuals with spinal cord injury (5K01HD087463-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10214648. Licensed CC0.

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