About the Laboratory

Motor control lab.

The Motor Control and Rehabilitation Laboratory studies how the brain controls movement and the ways to improve motor function in individuals with neurological impairments such as spinal cord injury and stroke.

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Location

115B Kimball Tower
40 Goodyear Rd, Buffalo, NY 14214

Lab Equipment

The Motor Control and Rehabilitation Laboratory is equipped with state-of-the-art technology. The primary research tool is non-invasive brain stimulation devices such as transcranial magnetic stimulators, BiStim system and the MAG&More, which enable us to test and/or elicit plasticity in neural circuits within the brain.

The lab applies the stimulation with Brainsight, an MRI-based neuronavigation system, to stimulate areas of the brain with high precision and reproducibility. We can monitor the response from brain stimulation by using wireless electromyography in up to 16 muscles at a time to provide vast information about the motor system.

Meet the Team

Han Jing Jo Snapshot.

Hang Jin Jo, PT, PhD

Lab Director

Jo has a clinical background as a physical therapist and, throughout her career, she has been driven by her interests in studying how the brain controls movements in healthy people, as well as in individuals with neurological impairments. She is also interested in understanding neural mechanisms of cortical and spinal circuits and developing neuromodulation protocols to induce neuroplasticity leading to improvement in motor function. 

View all published research
Francisco headshot.

Francisco Benavides, MD

Research Scientist

Benavides focuses his research on motor control and transcranial magnetic stimulation. Among his previous positions before joining UB, Franscisco served as scientific consultor at companies that produce equipment for other neuroscientists requiring complex laboratory setups, as well as clinical researchers and clinicians. He has also served as a scientist in other institutions like Shirley Ryan Abiity laboratory at Northwestern in Chicago and The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis at the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine. He received his doctor in medicine and surgery degree from the Universidad Central del Ecuador.

Additional team members:

  • Mary Grace Shine, MA
        Clinical Research Coordinator
  • Abbigail Kubiak, OTD, OTR/L
        Research Occupational Therapist
  • Christiana Berge, MS, OTR/L
        Research Occupational Therapist
  • Ellory Harpst, DPT
        Research Physical Therapist
  • Raisa Togani
        Research Student
        UB Graduate student in Exercise Science
  • Jinsun Kim
        Research Student
        UB Undergraduate student in Exercise Science
  • Emanukere Ajang
        Research Student
        UB Undergraduate student in Neuroscience
  • Gordon Fang
        Research Student
        UB Undergraduate student in Exercise Science