November 29, 2023

Benjamin Binder‐Markey, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, is one of only 10 recipients across the country designated by The Hartwell Foundation to receive a 2022 Individual Biomedical Research Award for his project “Targeting Recovery of Muscle Function Following Botulinum Neurotoxin Therapy in Cerebral Palsy”. The Award will provide support for three years at $100,000 direct cost per year and is given to researchers who are working on projects that are in the early stages, are innovative, and have the potential to benefit children in the United States. In addition, Drexel receives one Hartwell Fellowship that the University is asked to designate to a qualified postdoctoral researcher in the early stage of their career. Each Fellowship provides support for two years at $50,000 direct cost per year to enable specialized training in biomedical research.

Cerebral palsy (CP) is the most common cause of childhood physical and movement disability in the United States and affects one out of every 345 children. Over time, movement becomes exceedingly hard due to the muscle impairments, requiring invasive muscle, tendon, and bone surgeries to relieve discomfort. Lifelong physical therapy can be useful to reduce muscle tightness and delay surgery, with a common intervention being injections of Botulinum Neurotoxin (BoNT), commonly known as Botox. “Unfortunately, detrimental consequences with long‐term BoNT therapy exist where, contrary to intentions, repeated injections impairs muscle growth, decreases muscle function, and potentially speeds up time to critical surgery,” Binder‐Markey stated.

With research support from The Hartwell Foundation, Binder‐Markey will work with a collaborative, multidisciplinary team to explore the unintended consequences of Botox. “Within this project we will explore how BoNT may affect muscle growth and stiffness in children with CP impairing their long‐term function. The overall goal is to establish interventions that allow for the short‐term benefits of BoNT without the long‐term detrimental consequences.”

Complementing Binder‐Markey’s expertise in muscle mechanics and adaptation, this project pulls together the expertise of Drexel’s School of Biomedical Engineering, Sciences, and Health Systems (BMES) Kara Spiller, PhD, professor and leading expert in immune response, modulation, and engineering, and Lin Han, PhD, associate professor and leading expert in extracellular matrix (ECM) and tissue nano‐mechanics. Sudarshan Dayanidhi PT, PhD, research scientist and assistant professor at Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, is a pediatric physical therapist and expert in satellite cell dysfunction and impaired muscle growth in children with CP, and Jason Howard, MD, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon specializing in the care of children with CP and whose research focuses on muscle impairments in children with CP at Nemours Children Hospital.

“Dr. Binder‐Markey is the first physical therapist to receive this award, fourth Drexel recipient and first recipient from CNHP,” commented Rose Ann DiMaria‐Ghalili, PhD, professor, senior associate dean for Research and Provost Solutions Fellow. “This award is a limited competition open to only 15 universities nationwide, which include UPenn, Northwestern, Duke, UVA, John Hopkins, Yale, and Cornell,” she added.

Binder‐Markey hopes that building this collaborative team will lead to future projects, but his focus for this project is to successfully determine how the drug affects the muscles in children with CP which would help them to develop targeted interventions to go along with long‐term BoNT therapy. “Such an intervention would be to delay/prevent invasive surgeries, decrease caregiver burden, and generally improve the quality of life in affected children,” he remarked.

“Multidisciplinary projects such as this one, which enlists the expertise of faculty from the College of Nursing and Health Professions, the School of Biomedical Engineering, Sciences and Health Systems, and outside partners, have the power to impact peoples’ everyday lives,” said Drexel University President John Fry. “We are thrilled that The Hartwell Foundation selected Dr. Binder‐Markey as one of this year’s Individual Biomedical Research Award recipients. The prestigious recognition is well deserved.”

Binder‐Markey is not only grateful to The Hartwell Foundation, but to everyone at the University and CNHP who helped him through the entire application process. He’s particularly thankful to his colleagues in the Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences. “Providing the resources to begin building out my lab and protecting my time to develop this research agenda was essential in my development as an early career researcher.”

Binder‐Markey has an affiliate appointment within the School of Biomedical Engineering, Sciences, and Health Systems. This project furthers ties with BMES and starting new ones outside the university with Nemours Children’s Hospital.

“The Hartwell Foundation seeks to inspire innovation and achievement by offering individual researchers an opportunity to realize their professional goals. Our approach is to be unique, selective, thorough, and accountable. We provide an opportunity for those we support to make a difference and to realize their hopes and dreams," said Fred Dombrose, President of The Hartwell Foundation. To learn more about The Hartwell Foundation, see www.thehartwellfoundation.org.