Associated Lab - PD Dr. Eling de Bruin
Motor Control and Learning
The Motor Control and Learning (MCL) research group is part of the Institute of Human Movement Sciences and Sport.
The MCL research group is associated with the Laboratory of Exercise and Health. Our research focus is on the intimately linked motor and cognitive aspects of human movement and age-related risk of falling. We strive to extend our findings ‘from bench to bedside’ using efficient combinations of basic and advanced technologies to capture the plasticity of central and peripheral motor control systems as well as of cognition in response to physical activity and training interventions.
Current projects of the MCL group investigate the following topics:
- Motor-cognitive interaction and effects of Exergame training - Alexandra Schättin
- Motor-cognitive interaction and virtual-reality and Exergame-based, multicomponent interventions to support healthy ageing - Manuela Omlin
- Brain-muscle functional connectivity of human locomotion by mobile brain-body imaging (MoBI) - Federico Gennaro
- Clinical translation of research findings in collaboration with geriatric clinics across Switzerland - Michael McCaskey
Studying the mechanisms of healthy ageing and changing neuromuscular control in the multidisciplinary department of Health Sciences and Technologies at ETH Zurich allows us to develop experimental procedures involving molecular and nutritional, biomechanical, and neurophysiological measures. The MCL lab itself is equipped for gait analysis, cognitive testing and CNS assessment using motion capturing, inertial sensors, surface electromyography and electroencephalography, functional near-infrared spectroscopy and access to magnetic resonance imaging.
Our long-term strategy aims to extend gained insights from healthy populations to clinical disorders. The MCL focus, however, will remain on the development of novel motor-cognitive training concepts, aimed at improving motor and cognitive adaptations as well as brain-muscle functional connectivity during locomotion. For more information on the different projects, please click the following link: http://www.btl.ethz.ch