Facilities
Palmer College of Chiropractic has a long history in research. Even
before the acquisition of external funds to support research, the college
has invested time, capital and energy building its research capacity to
support of both fundamental research in the sciences and applied clinical
research. Although research occurs wherever the faculty have offices and
laboratories, an extensive modern research facility also has been formed
on the Palmer campus. The Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research houses
most of the basic and clinical research offices and laboratories used
cooperatively by the Division of Graduate Studies in graduate research
and training.
Laboratories
Following appropriate supervised experience, graduate students have
ready access to facilities for normal light and electron microscopy,
morphometry, and biomechanics supporting on-going basic research within
the Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research and the Division of Graduate
Studies.
Microscopy laboratories, located within the PCCR, support the
college’s photomicroscopes and electron microscopes. The Center’s Nikon
Optiphot digital photomicroscope has capacities for bright-field,
dark-field, polarized and fluorescence microscopy. The electron
microscopy laboratories, also located in the Center, support the
college’s transmission and scanning electron microscopes. Images gathered
using the H500, Hitachi transmission electron microscope (TEM) can reveal
fine cellular details at magnifications of 100,000X (with a resolution of
2nm). The S500 Hitachi scanning electron microscope (SEM) can reveal the
details of surface relief of any coated surface, at magnifications of
10,000X (with a resolution of 10nm). Like the H500, any graduate student
or faculty member have full access to the SEM and associated preparatory
laboratories. Graduate research drawing on these capacities include:
topographical changes in surface vertebral articular cartilages in aging
humans and under immobilization, topographical changes in the articular
cartilage of the knee under immobilization and changes within the
intervertebral disc in flexion and extension of the vertebral column.
Graduate and other on-going funded research investigations drawing on
these capacities include: the cytological organization of the dorsal horn
of the spinal cord, changes in the vertebral articular cartilage
chondrocytes under experimental immobilization, and neuroanatomy of the
snapping turtle.
Additional laboratories within the PCCR support neuroanatomy,
neurophysiology, animal behavior and biomechanics research. A human
biomechanics laboratory is equipped to support investigation of
biomechanics questions based on studies of human cadavers. Additional
laboratories support investigations of the biomechanics of the normal
human spine and the spine in varying conditions, including
immobilization. Other laboratories support advanced investigations into
the structure and function of the nervous system, including tracing fiber
tracts and recording in vivo neural activity, changes associated with
immobilization and subluxation, and behavioral changes in response to
immobilization of intervertebral joints.
The basic research programs are supported by a state-of-the-art
Animal Care Facility. The standards for animal care comply with the
Animal Welfare Act, the United States Department of Agriculture, the
Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW) of the NIH, and the Department
of Agriculture and Land Stewardship of the State of Iowa. This work was
carefully reviewed and approved for conduct by the Institutional Animal
Care and Use Committee of the Palmer Chiropractic University Foundation,
and based upon this review could not have been completed without the use
of a minimum number of animals.
Clinic
The PCCR has an excellent physical environment to support not only
state of the art clinical research, but also training and experience in
the conduct of this research. The Research Clinic is also a learning
platform, attracting well-known clinicians with cutting edge experience
in research techniques, such as James M. Cox, D.C., D.A.C.B.R., developer
of the Cox Distraction Manipulation Technique.
The first floor of the Center for Chiropractic Research is dedicated
to a chiropractic research clinic and associated laboratories. The
Research Clinic has a patient capacity of 200 visits per week. In
addition to examination and patient care rooms, the Clinic includes rooms
for research interviews, physical therapy, clinical kinesiology and
radiography. Graduate students and faculty conducting funded research
into disease mechanisms, or ergonomic and kinesiologic topics, also have
access to the neuroscience and anatomical laboratories, the human
bioengineering laboratories and the physical therapy facilities.
Randomized trials, pilot studies, and case studies are accommodated
through the integrated, computerized, clinical record-keeping system
within the clinic, coordinated by the Office of Data Management.
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