Translational Pharmacologic Efficacy Studies of Glial Growth Factor 2 (GGF2) in Spinal Cord Injury Models and in the Veterinary Clinical Setting

Abstract : The work performed under this grant evaluated the efficacy of Glial Growth Factor 2 (GGF2), a member for the neuregulin family, as a spinal cord injury (SCI) therapeutic. The research expanded on previous work and extended these studies to determine if GGF2 should be advanced into human clinical studies for SCI. GGF2 s optimal dosage was examined using a model of rodent SCI and testing several dose levels delivered either subcutaneously (SC) or intravenously (IV). Optimized dosing was determined to be by a SC route, and subsequent studies evaluated recovery of function by monitoring bladder function, muscle volume changes, and motor function in SCI rodent models of various severities. Additionally, safety and tolerability was explored in naive canines, and followed by a clinical trial for safety in dogs with SCI.