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Voluntary activation of the ankle plantar flexors
Supervisors: Dr Noel Lythgo, Professor Mary Galea, Professor David Morgan
Whole Body Vibration (WBV) has become a popular training method in recent years. Research has shown that it increases lower limb muscular strength and power. Other work has found it shifts the lower limb joint angle at which peak muscle torque or force is produced. Our work has shown, for example, that human ankle plantar flexors (placed in full stretch) respond to WBV by shifting the point of peak voluntary torque production toward a longer muscle length; that is, torque is produced earlier. We have also shown that strength and power changes observed with WBV are due to greater neural activation. The specific aim of this study is to investigate the effect of WBV on the ability of people recovering from stroke to maximally voluntarily activate the ankle plantar flexors. This population has difficulty walking due to muscular impairment in the leg on the affected side. A purpose built WBV system will be used.  View project details
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Wavelet bootstrapping estimation of fMRI data
| Florey Neuroscience Institutes |
The effective connectivity analysis of fMRI data allows us to get an insight of how different brain regions work together in order to perform a given task. One requirement in many estimation algorithms is the multivariate normality of the data. View project details
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What circuits in the brain are involved in learning and memory
The key way in which the brain works is as a complicated set of circuits, which link up various bits of information, combine them, process them and finally set the body to act. Some of the primary circuits in the brain, which are involved in a particular function, such as those involved in regulating movement, have been reasonably well characterized. View project details
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What factors regulate astrocytic gliosis?
We have found recently that the EphA4 receptor tyrosine kinase, which regulates axonal pathfinding and neurite outgrowth, is also a potent regulator of astrocytic gliosis. View project details
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What factors regulate neural stem cell differentiation?
The effects of different growth factors and cytokines on neural stem cells will be examined. View project details
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