New Space for the Movement Recovery Lab

The WFCPC’s research program, the Movement Recovery Lab expanded to two new spaces this year. With a focus on brain and nervous system injury and repair, the Movement Recovery Lab has developed an electrical stimulation approach to repair nervous system connections necessary for arm and hand function. Expansion of the research program allows the testing and measurement of this repair treatment in people.

The basic science lab transitioned into a custom-built dedicated space in the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons Building. This state-of-the-art complex integrates personnel seating, animal surgery, electrophysiology recording, live animal behavior, and microscopy under one roof, fostering greater cohesion among the 10 lab members. Visitors of the new 1,005 sq ft space can now explore the latest innovations and discoveries associated with the lab at the fully operational "Lab Show and Tell" station. 

"Our new lab space and shared corridor with other Neurology research labs feel like stepping into a network of possibilities. Each lab’s pursuit overlaps and amplifies the others, and together, we’re pushing the frontiers of science," shared Movement Recovery Lab Manager, Aditya Ramamurthy.

The expanded basic science lab seamlessly integrates with the new Human Neuromodulation Lab space, facilitating the translation of basic science advances into clinical trials for CP patients. Housed at the Neurological Institute, the Human Neuromodulation Lab space features dedicated areas for clinical testing to study the physiological effects of spinal cord stimulation, and physical therapy for exercise programs. The lab will test spinal cord stimulation as therapy for children with CP and expand spinal cord stimulation to adults with CP.

The new facilities will enable a more integrated approach to translational research, bridging the gap between laboratory findings and clinical applications.