News & Events

A Neuroengineer’s Approach to Rebuilding Neural Circuits Note: Justin Burrell is the 2025 winner of the DLF Prize for Post-Doctoral Research. This article emphasizes the regenerative potential of improving the connectivity of replenished neural material.

The Dan Lewis Foundation proudly presents Making Headway: An Evening of Scientific Advances and Musical Interludes DLF INFOTAINMENT FUNDRAISER WILL STREAM ON MARCH 26, 2026 The Dan Lewis Foundation will stream a program filled with up-to-date information about brain regeneration and terrific music on Thursday, March 26th. The event will be co-hosted by Dr. Jonathan LaPook, Chief Medical Correspondent for CBS News and Dr. David Margulies, biomedical and biotechnology writer and innovator and co-founder of the Dan Lewis Foundation. The musical performers will be Low Strung , a tremendous group of cellists who arrange and perform classic rock on their acoustic cellos and the Yale Symphony Orchestra playing two pieces from their 2025 season repertoire. The program will stream at 5:00 P.M. (Pacific), 6:00 P.M. (Mountain), 7:00 P.M. (Central), 8:00 P.M. (Eastern). This free program will be approximately one hour in length. The link to the event, which will activate on Thursday, March 26th at the above time(s) is: here . In late June, a similar program will be presented with additional information about the neuroscience and biotechnology of brain regeneration. This program will feature the Bill Hill Jazz Project and jazz pianist and Pulitzer Prize winning opera composer, Anthony Davis. Details of that event will be distributed in mid-June. We hope you will join us for this event. An informative and enjoyable program is promised!

Jonathan Lifshitz, PhD , leads the Neurotrauma & Social Impact research team as a joint venture between the University of Michigan Concussion Center, Michigan Medicine Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, and the VA Ann Arbor Health Care System. He is a Michigan Impact Professor and VA Research Health Scientist. Research projects focus on investigative, restorative, and regenerative treatments for traumatic brain injury as it develops into chronic neurodegenerative disease. We investigate domestic violence, child abuse, gender imbalance, and Veteran mental health, with focus on inflammation and circuit reorganization to detect and intervene. The goal is to train generations of investigators to apply rigorous data to work for social impact, including health and medical outcomes.

My daughter, currently nearing completion of a graduate program in counselling, recently introduced me to the term “ambiguous loss”. This term applies to a loss that is unclear and lacks certainty, leaving family members and close friends feeling stuck because it is so difficult to mourn or find closure. One type of ambiguous loss is when the person is physically present but psychologically absent because their personality, memory, cognition, or emotional connection has been altered. Examples might include a family member with dementia, a progressive disease, a severe emotional disorder, or substantial brain injury. A second type of ambiguous loss is when the person is psychologically present but physically absent. This could include a missing person due to a natural disaster, a long- term incarceration, a kidnapping, or severe estrangement from the family. This type of loss can lead to intense confusion, frozen grief, and a prolonged sense of helplessness.

Marchell is an engaging and energetic middle-aged man who was enthusiastic about being interviewed for the DLF newsletter. He is an activist working to promote the rights and well-being of persons in the brain injury community, with a particular emphasis on helping persons with brain injury who are incarcerated or have been released from prison. Marchell is a successful businessman, proud of the company he co-founded--the Association of Young Business Owners (AYBOS), a marketing company in the Denver, Colorado area. He also works for Well Power (Denver’s Mental Health Center system) as a Zero Suicide Certified Peer and Family Specialist.  Marchell is clearly a man on the move to get a lot of positive things done. But this wasn’t always the case. Marchell spent much of his younger adult life incarcerated himself for a variety of crimes including robbery and assault. He had a history of recidivism following multiple releases.

For most of modern medical history, the brain has been viewed as incapable of regeneration. While skin, bone, and even parts of the liver can regenerate after injury, damage to the brain—whether due to stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), or neurodegenerative disease—has long been considered largely irreversible. Over the past decade, however, advances across stem-cell biology, neuroengineering, and computational neuroscience are challenging this dogma. Today, a broad set of scientific strategies is aimed at enabling true repair of damaged neural circuits . Many of these scientific strategies have been highlighted in previous editions of the DLF newsletter Neural Connections ( archived at the DLF website ). Although each approach faces obstacles, the collective progress is significant enough to shift expectations about what may one day be possible. This article focuses on one strategy that has produced some of the most dramatic and tangible preclinical results: transplantation of human stem-cell–derived neural tissue.

The DLF is very pleased to announce its first online concert to be streamed on the evening of March 28th, 2026 (starting 8:00 P.M. Eastern). The concert will feature a variety of wonderful musical performers from across the country including: Low Strung Cellos : terrific acoustic ensemble featuring original interpretations of rock and pop hits Denver Spirituals Choir : inspiring choral arrangements of spirituals and gospel music Bill Hill and friends : extraordinary percussionist and composer in small ensemble setting Anthony Davis : lauded jazz pianist and Pulitzer Prize winning composer Yale Symphony Orchestra : selections from its superb repertoire

On July 10, 2025, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) announced a major initiative titled Functional Repair of Neocortical Tissue or FRONT. The announcement states “FRONT will pioneer a curative therapy for the more than 20 million adults in the US living with chronic neocortical brain damage from neurodegeneration, stroke, trauma, and other causes, which costs the country an estimated $800 billion per year. Worldwide, more than 200 million people live with debilitating after-effects of brain damage.”  A set of informational meetings about this program and a due date for outlines of potential proposals have been set for August. Full proposals are due by September 25, 2025. Complete instructions, specifications, and expectations are delineated in the ARPA-H FRONT announcement. The FRONT announcement includes a clear expectation that the successful brain regeneration methods that are discovered will be used in clinical trials with persons with brain injury by the fifth year of the program. The DLF lauds ARPA-H for initiating this program. We are discussing possibilities for playing a supportive role as proposals develop. This exciting program is congruent with the original overarching goals of the DLF and confirms the validity of its mission.

Dr. Burrell is a translational neuroengineer in the Departments of Neurosurgery and Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania. His research integrates advanced neural repair strategies with clinical translation, focusing on axon protection, nerve fusion, and engineered neural tissue for neurotrauma recovery. Dr. Burrell has led the development of multiple first-in-field innovations—including the first large-animal model of nerve fusion, delayed axonal fusion protocols, and the first orally active axonal protectants—positioning him as a recognized leader in regenerative neurotechnologies. He is co-founder of Neurostorative LLC and plays a central role in several other platforms aimed at neural reconnection, long-term preservation, and bio-integrated prosthetic systems.