Motor Control and Locomotor Recovery in Spinal Cord Injury

Thu, 26 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This project spans the planning, assessment, and implementation of an individualized transspinal stimulation and locomotor-training program for adults with spinal cord injury.

Table of Contents

Research Overview

Noninvasive brain and spinal cord neuromodulatory techniques have shown strong potential as neural interfaces to support gait recovery in individuals with neurological disorders. Among these approaches, transspinal (transcutaneous spinal cord) stimulation (tSCS) has emerged as a promising method for modulating spinal cord excitability and enhancing locomotor function following upper motoneuron lesions.

During my postdoctoral research fellowship in Professor Maria Knikou’s Klab4Recovery Research Program at the College of Staten Island, CUNY in New York, I focused on the biomechanical and neurophysiological analysis of human motor control through clinical research studies and clinical trials that examined the neuromechanical mechanisms of noninvasive transspinal stimulation delivered alone or alongside locomotor training. Our work aimed to advance sensorimotor recovery and improve standing and walking abilities in individuals with chronic spinal cord injury. These studies were supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the New York State Department of Health Spinal Cord Injury Research Board.

Research Contributions

During my time in the Klab4Recovery program, I contributed to several clinical research projects in which transspinal stimulation was applied either as a neuromodulation method or as a neurorecovery intervention integrated with robot-assisted locomotor training (Lokomat® 6 Pro, Hocoma).

My contributions included:

Completing more than 100 experimental sessions involving clinical, neurophysiological, and biomechanical data collection
Supporting the administration of over 200 locomotor training and transspinal stimulation treatment sessions
Developing signal processing approaches and mathematical algorithms for data analysis
Contributing to all neurophysiological experiments involving healthy participants and individuals with spinal cord injury, including full setup and instrumentation

Research Focus

During my fellowship, I aimed to clarify the mechanisms through which spinal cord stimulation influences the neural control of gait. This work strengthened my understanding of how neuromodulatory techniques may improve rehabilitation outcomes in neurological populations and deepened my integration of neurophysiology and the biomechanics of human movement within a translational research framework.

In the Klab4Recovery Lab

Robot-assisted locomotor training, neurophysiological testing, and EEG sessions in the Klab4Recovery lab, CUNY

Research projects were coordinated by Dr. Maria Knikou ( ). The National Institutes of Health Grant also supported by the , the , and co-coordinated by Dr. Noam Y. Harel ( ).

Connection to adapted physical education

This postdoctoral research line sits within the same applied framework as my broader work in adapted physical education: designing and evaluating individualized, evidence-based movement interventions for individuals with disabilities. Here, the population is adults with chronic spinal cord injury and the intervention combines noninvasive spinal neuromodulation with locomotor training; the aim — restoring functional movement and improving physical ability and quality of life for individuals whose neurological condition limits typical movement — is the same aim that guides my broader research and teaching program in adapted physical education.