Projects

Enrolling individuals with Parkinson's Disease and Breast Cancer now! Fill out the form below to get started.

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Enrolling individuals with Parkinson's Disease and Breast Cancer now! Fill out the form below to get started. 〰️

Movement Disorders and Neurological Disease R&D

Our work on Movement Disorders and Neurological Disease is focused on engineering methods and devices to enhance the mobility, sensorimotor function and the Quality of Life for patients affected by Stroke, Parkinson’s Disease, Essential Tremor, Cerebral Palsy, Spinal Cord Injury. ALS, and MS, among others.

  • Precision Neurophysical Therapy

    Led by Dr. Evancho, we are developing new forms of neurorehabilitation approaches based on principles of neural plasticity. We are combining a form of non-invasive neuromodulation, known as transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) with movement-based rehabilitation training. Our efforts in Precision Neurophysical Therapy (PNT) are focused on improving mobility, balance, gait, and sensorimotor function in patients with Parkinson’s Disease, traumatic brain injury, and during stroke recovery.

    Adaptive SCUBA Diving

    Dr. Tyler works closely with the Combat Wounded Veteran Challenge, other organizations, students, and disabled veterans to develop adaptive SCUBA equipment enabling injured veterans and others with spinal cord injuries to enjoy recreational SCUBA. Specifically, we are engineering artificial proprioceptive devices, adaptive buoyancy compensation devices, and adaptive diver propulsion systems to enhance the quality of life through diving for injured veterans.

    Virtual Diagnostics and Therapeutics for Failure of Gait (Falling)

    We are collaborating with Drs. Virendra Mishra (UAB Radiology) and Mohan Thirumalai (UAB Lakeshore National Center on Health, Physical Activity, and Disability) to engineer methods, which integrate noninvasive neuromodulation, virtual reality and virtual immersion to better detect fall risks and provide virtual rehabilitation to help prevent injuries due to falling.

    Focused Ultrasound for Treatment of Chronic Back and Pelvic Pain

    We are working with Dr. Steven Rothenberg (Department of Radiology) to explore the use of focused ultrasound (FUS) neuromodulation to treat chronic back and pelvic pain. We are exploring different neuroanatomical targets including the cervical plexus, sacral plexus, and anterior cingulate cortex using innovative methods and devices.

    RLS Neuromodulation Study (CARLS Protocol)

    Cortical Approaches to Restless Legs Syndrome

    This study is in collaboration with Dr. Marshall Holland’s neurosurgery lab and investigates the role of cortical inhibitory dysfunction in Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) and evaluates whether non-invasive brain stimulation can improve symptoms. While RLS is often treated with medications or invasive approaches such as Spinal Cord Stimulation, the underlying cortical mechanisms contributing to sensory and motor symptoms remain poorly understood.

    Using a combination of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and clinical symptom assessment, this project examines whether disruptions in inhibitory signaling—particularly within motor and sensorimotor networks—contribute to the abnormal urges and discomfort characteristic of RLS. The study further tests whether targeted neuromodulation (e.g., rTMS) can restore inhibitory balance and reduce symptom severity.

    The long-term goal is to develop non-invasive, mechanism-based treatments for RLS by linking cortical physiology to clinical outcomes, providing an alternative to more invasive or pharmacological interventions.

Mental Health R&D

For more than a decade, we have been developing neurotechnology aimed at reducing anxiety, depression, and insomnia.

Our patented and patent-pending methods and devices include transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) and neuromodulation by focused ultrasound (FUS) systems. We also have other patent-pending methods of treatment using psychedelic compounds under investigation.

  • Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) for improving sleep and reducing stress in breast cancer patients.

    Led by Dr. Alex Evancho, we are planning and launching a study evaluating the feasibility and efficacy to treat insomnia and reduce stress in late-stage breast cancer patients receiving palliative care at UAB.

    Focused Ultrasound for Non-invasive Deep-Brain Stimulation and Treatment of Depression

    Since our discovery that focused ultrasound can be used for non-invasive neuromodulation, we have worked to develop its applications for treating mental health disorders including depression. We were recently awarded a $1M grant over three years from the National Science Foundation to continue studying and developing focused ultrasound as a means of non-invasive deep-brain stimulation to understand and treat cognitive affective disorders.

    Hypnogogic Photic Neuromodulation

    In addition to sound, magnetic fields, and electric fields, we are interested in understanding how visible wavelengths of pulsed light can enhance performance by inducing different brain states. We are studying and engineering methods and devices intended to create a sense of awe, as well as to entrain specific brain rhythms for decreasing stress and improving cognitive performance (for example, inducing Flow States).

Cognition and Vitality R&D

Our work has investigated the relationship between physical activity and cognitive function over the past decade using adaptive exercise interventions.

We have found that physical activity interventions act to slow or even reverse the progression of cognitive declines and improve features of executive function such as verbal fluency, semantic performance, and cognitive processing speed. The lab uses neuroimaging and neurostimulation to evaluate changes in cognitive function due to aging and disease. Our work has been published in journals such as NeuroImage, Human Brain Mapping, Behavioural Brain Research, Experimental Gerontology, Neurobiology of Aging, Brain Imaging and Behavior, Brain and Cognition, and Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair.

  • Our current projects are investigating the effects of neuromodulatory interventions on older adults with subjective cognitive decline, which is a condition that is associated with an increased risk for dementia. We combine a number of neurological investigatory technologies such as functional MRI, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, transcranial magnetic stimulation, electroencephalography, and neuropsychological assessment to evaluate whole health in aging and disease. Our working ethos is: "Use it and renew it!"

    Intermittent Hypoxia & Deep-End Fitness

    We are studying the effects of intermittent hypoxia achieved through breath holding on cognitive resilience and neural plasticity in close collaborations with Deep End Fitness. Other studies have shown intermittent hypoxia can produce restorative plasticity following injuries, such as spinal cord injury. We are investigating how breath holding and free breath diving produce enhanced physical performance, as well as increased psychological and cognitive resilience across individuals ranging from professional athletes to disabled veterans.

    AMPLIFI Study

    Adaptive Modulation of Plasticity through Lactate and Fitness Interventions

    The AMPLIFI study investigates how acute and short-term aerobic exercise modulates cortical inhibitory control and neuroplasticity in humans. The project is grounded in the idea that exercise-induced metabolic changes—particularly elevations in lactate—can transiently alter inhibitory signaling in the brain, creating a window for enhanced cognitive and neural adaptation.

    A central focus of the study is response inhibition, assessed using a Go/No-Go task, which provides a well-characterized and quantifiable measure of inhibitory control. This paradigm allows us to probe how effectively individuals can suppress prepotent responses—a core executive function linked to frontal lobe circuitry, particularly within prefrontal and motor inhibitory networks.

    To directly assess underlying neurophysiology, the study integrates transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) measures of cortical excitability and inhibition, including short-interval intracortical inhibition (SICI), long-interval intracortical inhibition (LICI), and intracortical facilitation (ICF). These measures provide a mechanistic index of GABAergic inhibitory tone, which we hypothesize is modulated by exercise intensity and associated metabolic state.

    Participants complete sessions involving:

    • Aerobic exercise at varying intensities (including conditions targeting lactate threshold)

    • Behavioral testing of inhibitory control using the Go/No-Go task

    • TMS-based assessment of cortical excitability and inhibition before and after intervention

    The study includes healthy younger adults, older adults, and individuals with neurological conditions (e.g., stroke), allowing us to examine how inhibitory control and its plasticity vary across populations.

Head Injury R&D

Vestibular dysfunction is a common yet poorly understood feature in patients with TBI.

Vagus Nerve Modulation for Vestibular Dysfunction and Balance Disorders. We are combining forms of noninvasive neuromodulation, such as auricular vagus nerve stimulation with movement therapy and balance training to improve vestibular deficits in patients suffering from TBI and concussion.

Industry Efforts

In addition to our UAB academic engineering and development efforts, we have several ongoing external, industry-sponsored efforts related to the ABL. Some of our solutions have produced spinout technologies being commercialized. 

  • VNS for Warfighter Mental Health

    For many years, Dr. Tyler has led efforts to develop vagus nerve stimulation devices intended to enhance human performance for the U.S. Department of Defense. In 2017 he co-founded IST, which recently developed a patent-protected, product prototype being tested under private contracts to determine usability, efficacy, and to provide customer feedback from their DoD sponsors. Their BRAIN BUDS system is one of the most effective taVNS devices produced to date. 

    Low-dose Psilocybin to Treat Anxiety and Demoralization

    Psychedelic compounds hold the promise to transform mental health crisis around the world. To harness the potential of these compounds, Dr. Tyler began working with other scientists and business professionals. In 2019, they co-foundedDiamond Therapeutics, Inc.Diamond is conducting a Phase II Clinical Trial on the safety and efficacy of repeated, low-dose (non-hallucinogenic) psilocybin for the treatment of Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Diamond Therapeutics sponsoring and collaborating withDr. Peter Hendricks in the School of Public Health to conduct a FDA- and IRB-approved trial examining the effects of low-dose psilocybin on brain plasticity and demoralization. Due to his pending patents on these methods and his consultant basis conflicts of interest, Dr. Tyler has no role in the industry-sponsored trial other than as an observer.