

Evangelos A. Christou, Ph.D.
Professor
​Contact Information
1864 STADIUM RD
Room FLG-1
GAINESVILLE, FL 32611-8205
​(352) 392-0584 ext: 1447
eachristou@ufl.edu
Education:
1994: B.S., Department of Human Potential and Performance, Truman State University, Kirksville, Missouri, USA
1994: A.T.C., NATA Board of Certification.
1996: M.S., Department of Kinesiology, University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, USA
2000: Ph.D., Department of Kinesiology, University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, USA
2000-2004: Postdoctoral training, Neurophysiology of Movement Laboratory (Roger M. Enoka), Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA
Research Interests:
My broad research area is human movement control, with a focus on movement variability. Although variability is a robust characteristic of our movements, it increases with aging and certain neurological diseases. The exacerbation in movement variability has serious functional implications. My research attempts to: 1) better understand the neural mechanisms of movement variability; 2) characterize the consequences of exacerbated movement variability in activities of daily living; 3) develop innovative rehabilitation tools to reduce deleterious movement variability.
Professional Experience:
2000-2004 Research Associate, Dept. of Integrative Physiology, Univ. of Colorado
2004-2006 Senior Res Associate, Dept. of Integrative Physiology, Univ. of Colorado
2006-2010 Assistant Professor, Dept. of Health & Kinesiology, Texas A&M University
2010-date Associate Professor, Dept. Applied Physiology & Kinesiology, University of Florida
2012-2016 Associate Professor, Department of Physical Therapy, University of Florida
2016-date Professor, Department of Applied Physiology & Kinesiology, Univ. of Florida
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Honors and Awards:
1993 International Scholarship Award, Truman State University, Kirksville, MO
1993 Outstanding Exercise Science Student, Truman State University, Kirksville, MO
1994 Cum Laude, Truman State University, Kirksville, MO
1995 T. K Cureton Physical Fitness Research Award, Univ. of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, IL
1997, 2000 Laura J. Huelster Travel Scholarship, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL
2009-date Editorial Board for European Journal of Applied Physiology
2010-date Editorial Board for Frontiers in Exercise Physiology
2007 Invited Speaker, Health Science, Univ. of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX.
2008 Invited Speaker, Kinesiology, University of Texas, Austin, TX.
2010 Invited Speaker, Exercise Science, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI.
2011 Invited Speaker, Kinesiology, Penn State University, State College, PA.
2012 Invited Speaker, Biomechanics, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE.
2012 Invited Speaker, International Sport Science Congress, Mokpo, Korea.
2012, 2016 Invited Speaker, Motor Control, Wisla, Poland.
2012-date Associate Editor for Frontiers in Exercise Physiology
2013-date Editorial Board for Journal of Motor Behavior
2013-2015 Associate Chair, Department of Applied Physiology & Kinesiology, Univ. of Florida.
2014 Teacher of the Year, College of Health and Human Performance, Univ. of Florida.
2016-2019 University of Florida Research Foundation Research Professorship
Grant funding:
2017-2019 NIH-NINDS, R21 NS096258 Christou & Lodha (PI)
Motor Control Deficits Following Transient Ischemic Attack
2015-2017 NIH-NINDS, R21 NS094946 Christou & Vaillancourt (PI)
Dysmetria and Motor Function in SCA: Mechanisms and Rehabilitation
2015-2017 NIH-NINDS, R21 NS 093695 Vaillancourt & Christou (PI)
Pathophysiology of SCA and motor control
2008-2020 NIH-NINDS, R01 NS 58487 Vaillancourt (PI)
Role of the cortex and cerebellum in visually-guided motor behavior
Role: co-I
2015-2020 NIH-NINDS T32 NS 82169-01A1 Bowers/Vaillancourt (PIs)
Interdisciplinary Training in Movement Disorders and Neurorestoration.
Role: Mentor
2014–2018 VA Merit Review (B1149-R) D Clark (PI)
Rehabilitation of corticospinal control of walking following stroke
Role:Co-I
2014-2018 Scientist Development Grant N Lodha (PI)
Mechanisms and motor rehabilitation of reactive driving following stroke
Role:Mentor/Co-PI
2008-2014 R01 AG 031769 EA Christou (PI)
Aging and learning of fine novel motor tasks
Role: PI
2004-2006 R03 AG 024662 EA Christou (PI)
Aging and movement accuracy
Selected Publications:
Casamento A, Chen Y, Lodha N, Yacoubi B, & Christou EA. Motor plan differs for young and older adults during similar movements. Journal of Neurophysiology, 2017.
Lodha N & Christou EA. Low-frequency oscillations and control of the motor output. Frontiers in Physiology, 2017.
Park SH, Kwon M, Solis D, Lodha N, & Christou EA. Motor control differs for increasing and releasing force. Journal of Neurophysiology, 115 (6), 2924-2930, 2016.
Lodha N, Moon H, Kim C, Onushko T, & Christou EA. Motor output variability impairs reactive driving in older adults. Journal of Gerontology, Series A: Biomedical Sciences and Medical Sciences, 71(12):1676-1681, 2016.
Casamento A, Chen Y, Kwon MH, Snyder A, Subramony SH, Vaillancourt D, & Christou EA. Ankle force control correlates with functional capacity in Spinocerebellar ataxia 6 patients. Frontiers Human Neuroscience, 9, 184, doi:10.3389/fnhum.2015.00184, 2015.
Corti M, Smith BK, Falk DJ, Fuller DD, Byrne BJ, & Christou EA. Altered Activation of the Tibialis Anterior in Individuals with Pompe Disease: Implications for Motor Unit Dysfunction. Muscle & Nerve, 51(6), 877-83, 2015.
Moon H, Kim C, Kwon M, Chen Y, Onushko T, Lodha N, & Christou EA. Force control is related to low-frequency oscillations in force and surface EMG. PLOS One. 5;9(11):e109202, 2014.
Chen Y, Kwon M, Fox EJ, & Christou EA. Altered activation of the antagonist muscle during practice compromises motor learning in older adults. Journal of Neurophysiology, 112(4):1010-9, 2014.
Onushko T, Kim C, & Christou EA. Reducing task difficulty during practice improves motor learning in older adults. Experimental Gerontology, 6; 57C: 168-174, 2014.
Fox EJ, Moon H, Kwon M, Chen Y, & Christou EA. Neuromuscular control of goal-directed ankle movements differs for healthy children and adults. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 114(9): 1889-99, 2014.
Onushko T, Baweja HS, Christou EA. Practice improves motor control in older adults by increasing the motor unit modulation from 13 to 30 Hz. Journal of Neurophysiology, 110(10):2393-401, 2013.
Fox EJ, Baweja HS, Kim C, Kennedy DM, Vaillancourt DE, & Christou EA. Modulation of force within 0-1 Hz: Age-associated differences and the effect of magnified visual feedback. PLOS One. 8(2):e55970, 2013.
Christou EA & Enoka RM. Old adults are less accurate than young adults when lifting and lowering an inertial load with a hand muscle. AGE, 33(3):393-407, 2011.
Christou EA. Aging and variability of voluntary contractions. Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews, 39: 77-84, 2011.
Neto OP & Christou EA. Rectification of the EMG signal impairs the identification of oscillatory input to the muscle. Journal of Neurophysiology, 103: 1093-103, 2010.
Christou EA, Poston BJ, Enoka JA & Enoka RM. Different adaptations improve end-point accuracy with practice in young and old adults. Journal of Neurophysiology, 97: 3340-50, 2007.
Christou EA, Rudroff T, Enoka J, Meyer FG, & Enoka RM. Discharge rate during low-force isometric contractions influences motor unit coherence below 15 Hz but not motor unit synchronization. Experimental Brain Research, 178: 285-295, 2007.
Christou EA, Jakobi J, Critchlow A, Fleshner M, & Enoka RM. The 1-2 Hz oscillations in force are exacerbated by stress, especially in older adults. Journal of Applied Physiology, 97: 225-236, 2004.
Christou EA, Shinohara M & Enoka RM. Force fluctuations impair accuracy during anisometric contractions performed by young and old adults. Journal of Applied Physiology, 95: 373-384, 2003.
Professional Service:
2000-date Ad Hoc Reviewer:
Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation; Clinical Neurophysiology; Developmental Psychobiology; Emotion; European Journal of Applied Physiology; Exercise and Sports Science Reviews; Experimental Brain Research; International Journal of Sports Medicine; Journal of Applied Physiology; Journal of Gerontology; Journal of Motor Behavior; Journal of Neurophysiology; Journal of Neuroscience, Journal of Sports Science and Medicine; Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise; Muscle and Nerve; Neuroscience Letters; Neuroscience; Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology; Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports; Transactions on Biomedical Engineering
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2008-2011 American Society of Biomechanics Grand-In-Aid applications
2010, 2014 NIH Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation Sciences Study section
2013-date NSF/PAC College of Reviewers – Permanent member
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