2026 San Diego
SCI Symposium
You are cordially invited to attend the 2026 San Diego Spinal Cord Injury Symposium. This annual event brings together researchers, clinicians, patients, caregivers, and other stakeholders to disseminate cutting-edge research and clinical practice. The intended outcome is a three-way dialogue between biomedical researchers, healthcare professionals, and people with lived experience in the SCI community.
This is a free event open to the community and a livestream option will be available for remote participants.
Sponsored by Paralyzed Veterans of America, Cal-Diego Chapter, VA San Diego Healthcare System and UCSD Department of Neurosciences.
Supported in part by Grant #890 from the Paralyzed Veterans of America Education Foundation.
MARCH 27, 2026
SAN DIEGO
01
DAY
08
SPEAKERS
100
PARTICIPANTS
The Speakers
Camilo Londoño
PhD Student, Neurosciences
University of California San Diego
Camilo Londoño is a Neuroscience PhD student at UC San Diego whose research focuses on understanding and repairing the injured nervous system, especially after spinal cord injury. Working in the Zheng Lab at UC San Diego’s School of Medicine, he studies the molecular mechanisms of fibrotic scarring and axon regeneration. He previously earned a Bachelor of Engineering in Biomedical Engineering from Georgia Tech with highest honors and conducted research in stem cell models and brainstem circuits. Camilo is also active in outreach and science communication through programs such as Colors of the Brain.
Erna van Niekerk, PhD
Project Scientist, Department of Neurosciences
University of California , San Diego
Erna A. van Niekerk, Ph.D., is a Project Scientist in the Department of Neurosciences at the University of California San Diego, where she focuses on mechanisms of neural repair and regeneration after central nervous system injury. Her research centers on understanding why adult neurons lose their robust growth capacity and how to reawaken intrinsic growth programs to promote corticospinal tract and spinal cord repair. Combining gene sequencing, proteomics, and bioinformatics, Van Niekerk has authored influential publications on axonal mRNA transport, neuronal growth signaling, and spinal cord injury mechanisms.
Sierra Kauer, PhD
Instructor and Associate Research Scientist
Yale School of Medicine
Sierra Kauer, PhD, is a neuroscientist whose work focuses on spinal cord injury, synaptic plasticity, and mechanisms of neuropathic pain. She earned her PhD in Experimental Psychology from Idaho State University, where she investigated spinal sensorimotor function and neuromodulatory systems.
Following graduate training, she completed postdoctoral research in the Cafferty Lab at Yale School of Medicine, using mouse models of spinal cord injury to study corticospinal tract plasticity and strategies to enhance axon sprouting and functional recovery.
Her current research examines astrocytic glutamate transport, dendritic spine dysgenesis, and targeted interventions including PAK1 inhibition and romidepsin to reduce spasticity and neuropathic pain. Through preclinical and translational research, she aims to develop more effective therapies that improve quality of life for individuals living with spinal cord injury.
Martin Marsala, MD
Professor
University of California San Diego School of Medicine
Department of Anesthesiology
Sanford Consortium
Martin Marsala, MD, is a Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of California San Diego. He earned his medical degree from Safarik’s University of Kosice Medical School and previously served as a Senior Researcher at the Institute of Neurobiology, Slovak Academy of Sciences in Kosice, Slovakia. Dr. Marsala has authored more than 160 peer-reviewed publications indexed in the Web of Science and has served on scientific committees for conferences and professional associations across the United States, Japan, and Europe.
His research focuses on spinal ischemia-induced spastic paraplegia, chronic spinal trauma-related motor dysfunction, neuropathic pain following spinal or peripheral nerve injury, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). A major area of his work involves developing gene-therapy-based strategies to modulate spinal excitatory systems and reduce trauma-induced spasticity and chronic pain.
Dr. Marsala recently pioneered a novel spinal vector delivery method into the spinal subpial space, offering significant advantages in gene silencing and gene upregulation compared with existing approaches. Widely recognized for his contributions, he collaborates internationally to assist laboratories in implementing ischemia and subpial gene-delivery models. He is also part of a UC San Diego clinical team conducting a Phase I trial assessing the safety of spinal stem cell grafts in patients with chronic spinal trauma.
Stephen G. Waxman, MD,PhD
Professor of Neurology, Neuroscience, and Pharmacology, Yale University; Director, Neuroscience & Regeneration Research Center
Stephen G. Waxman, MD, PhD, is a leading figure in molecular neurobiology. He served as Chairman of Neurology at Yale School of Medicine and Neurologist-in-Chief at Yale–New Haven Hospital from 1986 to 2009, and founded Yale’s Neuroscience & Regeneration Research Center, where he currently serves as Director.
He earned his BA from Harvard University and his MD and PhD from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and completed neurology training and postdoctoral research at Boston City Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and MIT.
His research has defined how ion channels in nerve fibers govern impulse conduction and how their dysfunction contributes to multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, and neuropathic pain, leading to novel therapeutic strategies. Author of more than 800 scientific publications, he is internationally recognized for translational “molecule-to-man” research and serves as Editor-in-Chief of The Neuroscientist.
T. George Hornby, PT, PhD
Professor, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Indiana University School of Medicine
Director, Locomotor Recovery Laboratory
T. George Hornby, PT, PhD, is a professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the Indiana University School of Medicine and Director of the Locomotor Recovery Laboratory. Trained in neurophysiology, exercise science, and physical therapy, he earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of California, Los Angeles, a Master of Physical Therapy from the University of Pittsburgh, and a PhD from the University of Arizona.
He previously served as a research scientist and physical therapist at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, where he began in 2001, and has remained actively engaged in clinical research throughout his career. His work focuses on optimizing high-intensity, task-specific locomotor training to improve walking and functional mobility following stroke, incomplete spinal cord injury, and traumatic brain injury.
A widely published investigator, Dr. Hornby has authored numerous influential research articles and clinical practice guidelines that continue to shape neurologic physical therapy and rehabilitation practice worldwide.
Professor, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine
University of Washington
Chuck Bombardier, PhD
Chuck Bombardier, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington, specializing in the psychosocial aspects of neurological injury and disability. He serves as a co-investigator with the UW Traumatic Brain Injury Model System and has played key roles in spinal cord injury research networks, including the Northwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury System.
Dr. Bombardier has contributed extensively to clinical practice guidelines addressing mental health, substance use, and psychosocial adjustment following spinal cord injury, including chairing a major consortium guideline panel. His work emphasizes evidence-based interventions to improve mood, coping, and quality of life after traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries.
In addition to his research and clinical leadership, he mentors emerging rehabilitation scholars and contributes to national grant review and advisory panels focused on advancing psychosocial rehabilitation science.
Brian Schiefer
NAUI Scuba Instructor and Adaptive Diving Pioneer
Brian Schiefer is a NAUI scuba instructor and adaptive diving pioneer who transformed a life-changing spinal cord injury into a mission of innovation and inclusion. After being paralyzed in a 2008 military training accident, he discovered renewed freedom underwater through adaptive scuba programs for wounded veterans.
As the first spinal cord–injured diver in his training cohort, Brian helped shape early adaptive diving techniques and equipment modifications that enabled safe and efficient movement below the surface. He later founded SCI-DI (Spinal Cord Injury & Diving Innovation), advancing research, technology, and training to expand access to scuba diving for individuals with mobility impairments.
Through instruction, public outreach, and collaboration with National Association of Underwater Instructors and veteran organizations, Brian continues to broaden opportunities for adaptive scuba diving worldwide.
Agenda
8:05 am
Opening Remarks/ Breakfast- Henry York M.D.
8:10 am
Lab Updates- Camilo Londono
8:35 am
Lab Updates #2 - Erna van Niekerk, PhD
9:00 am
Advances In Understanding Neuropathic SCI Pain - Martin Marsala, MD
9:45 am
Break
10:00 am
The Duane Norman Memorial Lecture: Ion Channels and Dendritic Spines : Multiple Shots on Goal for SCI Pain - Sierra Kauer, PhD & Stephen G. Waxman MD, PhD
11:00 am
Locomotor Training- T. George Hornby PT, PhD
12:00 pm
Lunch
1:00 pm
Hypnotic Cognitive Therapy for SCI related - Chuck Bombardier, PhD
1:45 pm
Clinical Advances at the VA San Diego SCI/D Center- Maureen Jennings, DPT, NCS, ATP; Shawn Frayne, MSN, RN, CRRN, Henry York, MD
2:35 pm
Break
2:50 pm
Consumer Profiles in SCI and Adapted SCUBA -Brian Scheifer
3:30 pm
Development of an Adaptive Disc Golf Driver - SDSU Engineering
4:00 pm
Adjourn
The Venue
Admiral Baker Clubhouse
2400 Admiral Baker Road BLDG 3604
San Diego, CA 92124
Admiral Baker Clubhouse in Mission Gorge offers panoramic views of the golf greens and San Diego river from the wide windows of its elegant California-style architecture. The Presidio Ballroom's chandeliers, soft arches, and dark wood beams will surround your event for up to 200 in elegance.
Our Sponsors
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