Welcome Letter
Hal C. Lewis, Ph.D., DLF Co-Chairperson & David Margulies, M.D., DLF Co-Chairperson | Fall 2022

As Co-Chairs of the Dan Lewis Foundation for Brain Regeneration Research (the DLF), we are pleased to introduce you to the DLF’s first quarterly newsletter—Making Headway: DLF NeuroConnections. This newsletter will bring reviews and updates on research relevant to brain regeneration. Each issue will highlight a prominent neuroscientist contributing to the field of brain regeneration or a research program advancing medicines and methods to accelerate recovery from brain injury, especially for those in the chronic phase of recovery. In this inaugural issue, we will present the story of Dan Lewis, the namesake, and inspiration for our research foundation. You will also find a link that will take you directly to our website, which provides detailed information about the goals and methods of the DLF. In the coming months we will be adding information regarding resources and events that may be helpful for individuals with serious brain injuries and their families.


The overarching goal of the DLF is to pursue biomedical breakthroughs that will one day improve the lives of those affected by serious brain injury. We aspire to make a broad range of biomolecular medicines and other biomedical therapies available to the vast population of people with moderate and severe brain injuries. We will continue to raise funds and direct such funds toward the most promising and empirically supported biomedical therapeutics. In addition, by supporting programmatic research, the foundation aspires to expedite clinical trials - joint efforts between research institutions, biotech companies, and individuals with brain injuries and their families. The DLF is eager to stay in touch with the needs and aspirations of the brain injury community and its allies. Please visit our website. You will find much more detailed information about the DLF’s objectives and activities and ways you can contact us with questions and/or comments.


You have our sincere thanks for your interest in the DLF and your curiosity about the most cutting-edge approaches to brain regeneration and improving recovery rate and function of persons with serious brain injuries.


With best regards and hopeful wishes for the future,

David Margulies, M.D,

Hal C. Lewis Ph.D.


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Gloved hands hold a tablet showing medical data in a lab with blurred researchers in the background

ARPA-H Launches a Major Program in Brain Regeneration and Initiates a Second Offshoot Program

By Dan Lewis Foundation • July 24, 2026
ARPA-H, which stands for Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, is an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. One of its major projects is called the FRONT program which stands for Functional Repair of Neocortical Tissue .  The FRONT program focuses on repair and regeneration of the neocortex, the largest part of the brain. The neocortex is critical for many aspects of cognition and everyday functioning. The neocortex can be damaged in many ways including stroke, traumatic injury, and neurodegeneration, such as in Alzheimer's disease. Serious damage to the neocortex often causes individuals to be dependent on costly therapies or caregivers and can also lead to related health and medical problems. The FRONT program hopes to alter this pattern by using cutting-edge neurodevelopmental principles and stem cell technology to regenerate brain tissue and restore lost functions.
Lab technicians in blue gloves working with samples in a bright laboratory

Can Lost Brain Tissue Be Rebuilt?

By Hal Lewis • July 24, 2026
For decades, families facing severe traumatic brain injury have lived with a painful assumption: once brain tissue is lost, recovery is limited to what the surviving brain can re-learn. Rehabilitation can help. Technology can assist. Time can produce surprises. But the central wound—the loss of brain cells, circuits, and connections—has often been treated as permanent. That assumption is beginning to change.