Dr Michael Ridding

Biography/ Background

Qualifications

• 1996 PhD. Corticocortical connections in man. University of London.
• 1991 MSc. Human and Applied Physiology. University of London.
• 1987 HNC. Medical Physics and Physiological Measurement.
• 1985 ONC. Medical Physics and Physiological Measurement.

Current Appointments

• NHMRC Senior Research Fellow (Jan 2008- Dec 2012)
  Neuromotor Plasticity & Development Research Group,
  School of Paediatrics & Reproductive Health,
  The Robinson Institute,
  The University of Adelaide
• Director
  Research Centre for the Early Origins of Health and Disease (EOHaD)

 Research Overview

In 2009, the Human Sensorimotor Plasticity group headed by Associate Professor Mike Ridding and the Developmental Neuromotor Physiology group headed by Dr Julia Pitcher joined the Robinson Institute and formed the Neuromotor Plasticity and Development (NeuroPAD) research group. Mike is internationally-renowned for his pioneering work in human brain plasticity induction, and Julia is attracting increasing recognition for her novel use of neurophysiologic techniques to unravel the links between motor and cognitive development in preterm children. The research interests of the group encompass neuromotor development and neuroplasticity across the human lifespan, from prenatal and early postnatal factors influencing motor development, through to therapeutic uses of induced neuroplasticity in ageing and neuropathological disorders such as stroke and the dystonias. The aim of the group's research is to inform and develop therapeutic interventions to develop, maintain and rehabilitate human motor function. NeuroPAD collaborates widely with clinicians and scientists from a range of disciplines including motor control neuroscientists, neurologists, neonatologists, obstetricians, psychologists, paediatricians, anaesthetists, physiotherapists and clinical epidemiologists. NeuroPAD is housed in four new purpose-built laboratories in the Robinson Institute next to the Women's and Children's Hospital, and is fully equipped with state of the art transcranial magnetic brain stimulators with neuronavigation, high-density EEG and human neurophysiological recording systems.

NeuroPAD group members

Name	Position
Assoc/Prof Michael Ridding	Co-leader
Dr Julia Pitcher	Co-leader
Dr Sebastian Doeltgen	NH&MRC post-doctoral researcher
Mr Ryan Higgins	Research Assistant
Mr Luke Schneider	Research Assistant
Mr John Drysdale	Senior Paediatric Physiotherapist/Research Assistant
Ms Ashleigh Smith	Doctoral student
Ms Suzanne McAllister	Doctoral student
Ms Anna Moffat	Doctoral student
Ms Joanna Cole	Doctoral student
Mr Mitchell Goldsworthy	Doctoral student
Ms Emma Ho	Honours student
Ms Alysha Riley	Honours student

Awards & Achievements

2008	National Health & Medical Research Council Senior Research Fellowship
2003	Australian Research Council Queen Elizabeth II Research Fellowship
2003	Elizabeth Penfold Simpson Prize for Neuroscience. Awarded by the Australian Brain Foundation.
2001	Finalist The 2001 Eureka Awards - Prize for Scientific Research   (Sponsored by the University of New South Wales)

 Current Research Projects

My current research interests lie in the field of motor cortical plasticity or the capacity of the motor cortex to reorganise its connections with experience. Plasticity is important for learning and recovery from brain injury. I employ non-invasive brain stimulation techniques (including transcranial magnetic stimulation) to experimentally induce plasticity in the motor cortex of human subjects. While these approaches have considerable potential for treatment of neurological conditions their efficacy is, at present, limited due to high response variability. Our current research projects include:

1. Establishing the influence of genetic variations on plasticity induction
   
2. Investigation of the influence of cortical oscillatory activity on plasticity induction
   
3. Examination of the influence of premature birth on neuroplasticity capacity
   
4. Development of novel stimulation paradigms to induce lasting neuroplasticity

Research Funding

National Health and Medical Research Council
Australian Research Council
Australian Academy of Science
Wellcome Trust
Clive and Vera Ramaciotti Foundation
Ian Potter Foundation

Publications

Recent Publications

1. PM Rossini & MC Ridding. Brain stimulation, functional neuroanatomy of cortico connectivity. A reference book for Transcranial Stimulation. Editors Carlo Miniussi, Walter Paulus, Paolo M Rossini. Frontiers in Neuroscience Series. (In press).
2. Pitcher JB, Schneider LA, Drysdale JL, MC Ridding & JA Owens (2011). Motor System Development of the Preterm and Low Birthweight Infant. Clinics in Perinatology (In press)
3. S.H. Doeltgen, M.C. Ridding. Modulation of cortical motor networks following primed theta burst transcranial magnetic stimulation. Accepted for publication Exp Brain Res (EBR-11-0438R1, 25/05/11).
4. M. Goldsworthy, J.B. Pitcher, M.C. Ridding. The application of spaced rTMS protocols induces long-lasting neuroplastic changes in the human motor cortex. Accepted for publication Eur J Neurosci (EJN-2011-07-18574R1, 26/07/11).
5. A.S. Smith, M.C. Ridding, R.D. Higgins, G.A. Wittert & J.B. Pitcher. Cutaneous afferent input does not modulate motor intracortical inhibition in ageing men. Eur. J. Neurosci. Accepted for publication (11/08/2011 EJN-2011-06-18381).
6. S.M. McAllister, J.C. Rothwell, M.C. Ridding. Cortical oscillatory activity and the induction of plasticity in the human motor cortex. Eur J Neurosci 2011 33(10), 1916-24.
7. S.H. Doeltgen, M. C. Ridding. Low-intensity, short-interval Theta Burst Stimulation modulates excitatory but not inhibitory motor networks. Clin Neurophysiol 2011 122(7), 1411-6).
8. S.H. Doeltgen, M. C. Ridding, J. Dalrymple-Alford, M.L. Huckabee. Task-dependent Differences in Corticobulbar Excitability of the Submental Motor Projections: Implications for Neural Control of Swallowing. Brain Research Bulletin 2011 84(1), 88-93.
9. M.C. Ridding & U. Ziemann. Determinants of the induction of cortical plasticity by non-invasive brain stimulation in healthy subjects. J Physiol. 2010 588(13), 2291-2304.
10. G. Todd and M.C. Ridding. The response to repetitive stimulation of human motor cortex is influenced by the history of synaptic activity. Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience 2010 28(4), 459-67.
11. M.V. Sale, M.C. Ridding, M.A. Nordstrom. Circadian modulation of neuroplasticity in humans, and potential therapeutic implication. Reviews in the Neurosciences 2010 21(1), 55-66.
12. S.H. Doeltgen, M. C. Ridding, J. Dalrymple-Alford, M.L. Huckabee. Differential Effects of Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation Parameters on Submental Motor Evoked Potentials. Neurorehab and Neural Repair 2010 24(6), 519-527.
13. S. H. Doeltgen & M.C. Ridding. Behavioural exposure and sleep do not modify corticospinal and intracortical excitability in the human motor system. Clin Neurophysiol 2010 121, 448-452.
14. G. Todd, J.L. Taylor, J.E. Butler, S.R. Duma, M. Hayes, F. Carew-Jones, O. Piguet, S. Behnke, M.C. Ridding, D. Baumann, D. Berg, K.L. Double. Substantia nigra echomorphology and motor cortex excitability. Neuroimage 2010 50(4), 1351-6.
15. G. Todd, T.E. Kimber, M. C. Ridding, J. G. Semmler. Reduced motor cortex plasticity following inhibitory rTMS in older adults. Clin Neurophysiol 2010 121, 441-447.
16. J. Cirillo, A. Lavender, M.C. Ridding, and J. Semmler. Motor Cortex Plasticity Induced by Paired Associative Stimulation is Enhanced in Physically Active Individuals. J Physiol 2009 587(24), 5834-5842.
17. A.E. Smith, M.C. Ridding, R.D. Higgins, G.A. Wittert, J.B. Pitcher. Age-related changes in short-latency motor cortex inhibition. Exp Brain Res 2009 198(4), 489-500.
18. S.M. Schabrun, C. Stinear, W. D. Byblow & M.C. Ridding. Normalising motor cortex representations in focal hand dystonia. Cerebral Cortex 2009 19, 1968-1977.
19. G. Todd, S.C. Flavel, & M.C. Ridding. Priming theta burst repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation with low and high frequency stimulation. Exp Brain Res 2009 195(2), 307-15.
20. S.M. McAllister, J.C. Rothwell, M.C. Ridding. Selective modulation of intracortical inhibition by low-intensity Theta Burst Stimulation. Clin Neurophysiol 2009 120(4), 820-826.
21. G. Todd, N.G. Rogasch, S.C. Flavel, & M.C. Ridding. Voluntary movement and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation over human motor cortex. J Appl Physiol 2009 106(5), 1593-603.
22. S.H. Doeltgen, M.C. Ridding, G.A. O'Beirne, J. Dalrymple-Alford, M. Huckabee. Test-retest reliability of motor evoked potentials (MEPs) at the submental muscle group during volitional swallowing. J Neurosci Meth 2009 178, 134-137.
23. M.N. McDonnell, S.L. Hillier & M.C. Ridding. Effect of wrist position on sensorimotor processing in the grip-lift task. Clin Neurophysiol 2009 120(12), 2114.
24. Berardelli, G. Abbruzzese, R. Chen R, M Orth, M.C. Ridding, C. Stinear, A Suppa, C. Trompetto, P.D. Thompson. Consensus paper on SICI and other TMS intracortical paradigms in movement disorders. Brain Stimulation 2008 1(3), 183-191.
25. M.V. Sale, M.C. Ridding, M.A. Nordstrom. Cortisol inhibits neuroplasticity induction in human motor cortex. J Neurosci 2008 28(33): 8285-93.
26. S.M. Schabrun, M.C. Ridding, T.S. Miles. Role of the primary motor and sensory cortex in precision grasping: a transcranial magnetic stimulation study. Eur J Neurosci 2008 27(3), 750-756.
27. M.C. Ridding & J.C. Rothwell. Is there a future for therapeutic use of rTMS? Nature Rev Neurosci 2007 8(7), 559-67.
28. S.M. Schabrun & M.C. Ridding. The influence of correlated sensory input on motor cortical representations in humans. Exp Brain Res 2007 183(1), 41-9.
29. M.V. Sale, M.C. Ridding, M.A. Nordstrom. Factors influencing the magnitude and reproducibility of corticomotor excitability changes induced by paired associative stimulation. Exp Brain Res. 2007 181(4), 615-626.
30. M.N. McDonnell, P.D. Thompson, M.C. Ridding. The effect of cutaneous input on intracortical inhibition in focal task-specific dystonia. Mov Disord. 2007 22(9), 1286-92.
31. McDonnell MN, Hillier SL, Miles TS, Thompson PD, Ridding MC. Influence of Combined Afferent Stimulation and Task-Specific Training Following Stroke: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial. Neurorehabil Neural Repair. 2007 21(5), 435-443.
32. G. Todd, S.C. Flavel, & M.C. Ridding. Low intensity repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation decreases motor cortical excitability in humans. J App Physiol. 2006 101(2), 500-505.
33. M.N. McDonnell and M.C. Ridding. Transient motor evoked potential suppression following a complex sensorimotor task. Clin Neurophysiol 2006 117(6), 1266-1272.
34. M.N. McDonnell, S.L. Hillier, M.C. Ridding & T.S. Miles. Impairments in precision grip correlate with functional measures in adult hemiplegia. Clin Neurophysiol 2006 117(7), 1474-1480.
35. M.C. Ridding & S.C. Flavel. Induction of plasticity in dominant and non-dominant motor cortices of humans. Exp Brain Res 2006 171, 551-557.
36. M.N. McDonnell and M.C. Ridding. Afferent stimulation facilitates learning of a novel motor task. Exp Brain Res 2006 170(1), 109-15.

 

 

 

Entry last updated: Tuesday, 8 Nov 2011