Gwendolyn Sebring

2026 Next Generation Scientists Travel Award

Gwendolyn Sebring

PhD Candidate at University of Cincinnati / Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center

Project Title: AAV-Driven Choroid Plexus Epithelial Cell Ablation Significantly Reduces Ventricular Volume and Improves Survival in a Mouse Model of Neonatal Hydrocephalus

Neonatal hydrocephalus often requires lifelong, invasive surgeries for fluid removal and high risks of multiple revisions. Current treatments rely on mechanical shunts that have an 80% failure rate within ten years, resulting in a cycle of high-risk brain surgeries and infections.

Our research introduces a new product of one-time, less-invasive biological alternative. We have developed a targeted delivery system that, less invasively and permanently, reduces the specific cells responsible for producing brain fluid. In laboratory mouse models, this treatment successfully managed fluid levels and extended survival from 8 days to over 3 months with no side effects. For patients, this could reduce the risk of repetitive surgeries, offering a safer path toward a normal, healthy childhood and a significantly higher quality of life.