Elucidating the development of neural circuits involved in locomotion.

Our laboratory is interested in understanding how we walk. Walking requires coordinated movements from the left and right side of the body in an alternating manner. This process is regulated by the spinal cord, with input from the brain. Interestingly, a number of disorders identified as 'mirror movement disorders', in which people move both the right and left arms simultaneously, and spastic movement disorders including a 'bunny-hop gait' in some children, have given us some insights into how the nervous system controls movement. Despite this we still understand little about how the spinal cord controls movement. My laboratory uses genetic approaches, combined with molecular and physiological approaches to understand the cells and molecules in the spinal cord that control walking. The goal of our research is to understand how we walk and provide insights into how we can repair the spinal cord following injury.