Evangelos A. Christou, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Applied Physiology and Kinesiology

College of Health and Human Performance

2016 Awardee

Evangelos Christou directs the Neuromuscular Physiology Lab at UF, where his research team focuses on three major topics.

One area of research is on the effects of aging and neurological disorders, such as ataxia and essential tremor, and on the neural mechanisms that influence movement variability.

The team is interested in how movement variability affects daily activities such as driving and walking – both of which are known as major public health issues due to accidents and falls. Their recent work uses simulated driving environments to identify the movement deficits that impair driving and to inform rehabilitation protocols for individuals who exhibit driving impairments, such as those who have suffered a stroke.

Christou’s team is also investigating ways to reduce movement variability and enhance function in people with movement control deficits. One development includes a custom computer interface that can be used to reduce movement inaccuracy in individuals with ataxia.

“We are addressing this question by developing technically innovative, engaging and affordable intervention tools that can be used at home,” Christou said.

Christou has received research funding from the National Institute on Aging since 2004. He has also received funding from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and serves as a joint principal investigator or a number of other projects.

Christou has a history of collaboration with other investigators, both in the College of Health and Human Performance and across UF. He is on the editorial board of the European Journal of Applied Physiology and Frontiers in Exercise Physiology, and he serves as an ad-hoc reviewer for over 20 journals including the Journal of Neurophysiology, Journal of Applied Physiology and Experimental Brain Research.