Motor Impairment

RESEARCH CENTRE

Motor Impairment is a major cause of physical disability and includes muscle weakness and fatigue, impaired sensation and poor balance, and muscle contracture and spasticity – all of which need to work if we are to undertake the usual range of daily activities.

The goals of our five-year (2014-2018), NHMRC-funded Motor Impairment Program are to better understand the pathophysiology of motor impairment, to implement interventions and to drive enhanced clinical practice.

LATEST NEWS AND EVENTS

Second International Motor Impairment Conference 2020 (Register Interest)

18th November 2020

Following the success of the First International Motor Impairment Conference in Sydney, Australia in 2018, we are pleased to announce that the Second International Motor Impairment Conference will be held in Amsterdam on 18-20th November 2020.

The goal of these meetings is to better understand the pathophysiology of Motor Impairment, to implement interventions, and to drive enhanced clinical practice. Much is still unknown about fundamental mechanisms of Motor Impairment, and about its prevention and treatment.

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Location: Hotel Casa, Amsterdam.

Call for abstracts will open in February 2020.
Read about the First International Motor Impairment Conference 2018, held in Sydney, Australia.

Bringing together the brightest minds working on Motor Impairment from all over the world.

First International Motor Impairment Conference 2018

26th November 2018

Professor Simon Gandevia, Deputy Director at NeuRA announced that NeuRA will host the first International Motor Impairment Conference in Sydney Australia. Nov 26th-28th.

See what’s going on at NeuRA

FEEL THE BUZZ IN THE AIR? US TOO.

The importance of medical research - Professor Peter Schofield AO

A new study by Prof Rob Herbert and his team is investigating muscle contracture in children with cerebral palsy. Contracture is a stiffening of muscles, even when the muscle is passive. It is not yet known whether contracture is a result of changes in the muscle, changes in the associated tendon, or a combination of both. Around 53 per cent […]

Arkiev D'Souza

NeuRA BLOG: Using DTI to understand muscle contracture in children with Cerebral Palsy

‘Progressive. Incurable. Terminal. Nothing matters… I am going to die.’

‘There are days that I just cry like a baby. I’m meant to be the provider, the strong one. No son should have to change the underwear of their 57 year old father.’ Shin Liu is a man you want to know... kind, articulate and with love in his heart. At 57 years old however, Shin has planned his funeral. Two years ago, Shin was diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND). Unlike many cancers or heart disease, there is not a single thing the medical profession can do to stop MND. This excruciating disease twists and contorts the human body in the most horrific way, and it quickly destroys the ability to move, speak, swallow and breathe. Life expectancy post diagnosis is 2.5 years. But NeuRA researchers are making exciting progress toward it's defeat. After years of meticulous research, we've learnt that in more than 90% of MND cases a protein called TDP-43 is responsible for the changes in motor neurones. In pre-clinical (non-human) trials, we have found that this protein can be controlled by a specially engineered peptide sequence (i.e. medication) which has the potential to stop MND in its tracks. But here is the most exciting development… we are observing improvements in movement, behaviour and memory upon administering this medication! This is innovative, ground-breaking research and we need your help to accelerate this research, which will in time enable clinical trials in people living with MND. Will you support or research today?

Second International Motor Impairment Conference 2020 (Register Interest)

NeuRA Announces 2018 International Motor Impairment Conference in Sydney, Australia

Poor sleep, neurovascular injury and cognitive decline

Sleep is a fundamental biological requirement for human health. Poor sleep quality and increased sleep fragmentation increases the risk of dementia and cognitive decline. More specifically, poor sleep quality is considered to be an underlying cause of cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD), a common feature of the ageing brain that affects the small vessels of the brain. It is a slowly progressing disease that gradually lead to cognitive impairment, physical disabilities and emotion change with ageing. The sleep-related mechanisms promoting CSVD are not yet clear, but it is thought that marked increases in blood pressure and heart rate via activation of the sympathetic nervous system that occurred during sleep arousals in ageing people is a key factor. Because sleep quality decreases with normal ageing, and older adults take longer to fall asleep, have lighter sleep and more frequent arousals that fragment sleep, the primary aim of this project is to determine the role of nocturnal cardiovascular surges in the development of small vessel vasculopathy in CSVD that leads to pre-clinical neurological dysfunction.

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