Spinal cord injury researchers run New York marathon

Two University of Auckland honours students are among several Kiwis running the New York City Marathon to fundraise for research that could one day help people with spinal cord injuries walk again.

Laverne Robilliard and Connor Clemett - along with 26 team mates - aim to raise $140,000 in total ($5000 each) for the CatWalk Spinal Cord Injury Trust by competing in the race on November 5.

The young academics are studying how the spinal cord responds to inflammation after an injury and how inflammation can be minimised by strengthening the blood vessels around the spinal cord at the university's Spinal Cord Injury Research Facility (SCIRF) within the Centre for Brain Research. They decided to get involved in the fundraising effort after meeting members of the CatWalk Spinal Cord Injury Trust.

Founded by one of New Zealand's best known female equestrian riders - Catriona Williams - who became a C6/C7 tetraplegic after a riding accident in 2002, the charity aims to fix paralysis caused by spinal cord injuries through supporting research and innovation. One of the institutes it funds is the SCIRF.

"The passion they have to help find a cure for spinal cord injury and their work alongside us as scientists is definitely a driver for why I'm doing this," Robilliard said.

There is currently no way of repairing spinal cord damage.

Instead treatment usually involves reducing inflammation to the injury site in the hours and days after the person is hurt and rehabilitation to help them regain muscle control in their paralysed body parts.

However, researchers were working towards finding a cure.

"New projects that we have up and running now are based around trying to regrow the connections between neurons that are cut in spinal cord injuries and that's been something that's been out of reach for a while," Clemett told the Weekend Herald.

Robilliard said funding from charities like the CatWalk Spinal Cord Injury Trust was "vital" to scientific endeavour in this field.

"A lot of what we're doing at the Centre for Brain Research and wider spinal cord research involves a lot of new and upcoming techniques and are quite expensive."

The pair have been training for the marathon - their first ever - for about six months and are running between 20km and 30km in an average week.

Their team will wear matching race suits when they compete in the race, which snakes through New York City's five boroughs.

Robilliard hopes to participate in the event every year and would continue to raise money for the CatWalk Spinal Cord Injury Trust.

Clemett said the motto printed on the back of their race suits - "running so that others can walk" - would stick with him.

"I think that's potentially something that is going to have an impact on our life from now on. We can use this thing that we take for granted with running and actually raise a bit of money and make a change for people."

Anyone wanting to contribute to their fundraising effort can donate at:
https://catwalk2017newyorkmarathon.gofundraise.co.nz/page/ConnorClemett0
https://catwalk2017newyorkmarathon.gofundraise.co.nz/page/LaverneRobilliard