Age-related loss of physical ability and balance control are important predictors for falls in older people. Activities of daily life, such as stair negotiation, are challenging as they require older people to operate close to their functional limits. This makes stair negotiation performance a good candidate to detect early-onset deterioration before a fall occurs, as well as a good task-specific exercise modality. To investigate these assumptions, I will first assess the sensitivity of linear and non-linear analyses of data from body-worn inertial measurement units (IMUs) to detect age-related and training-induced changes in balance control of older people (65+ years). These findings will then be applied to assess improvements of balance control and the underlying changes in neuromuscular organisation following a 1-year home-based stair climbing exercise program in older people. Finally, I aim to elucidate the role of cortical involvement in neuromuscular organisation during stair negotiation in older people using electroencephalograms and analyses of muscle synergies obtain from electromyographic signals of the lower limb muscles. This will allow me to assess the level of cortico-synergy coherence and the plastic changes associated with training-induced adaptations in kinematic profiles during stair negotiation. The findings from this project will contribute to a better understanding of age-related and training-induced adaptations in balance control, neuromuscular organisation, and the role of cortical involvement in task-specific adaptations. In addition, the assessments of sensitivity of current and novel analyses of inertial data will help to improve detection of early-onset deterioration of balance performance to better target training interventions at individuals with increased fall risk.

Background. Without blood donors, there are no blood products to transfuse and no plasma for pharmaceutical drug production. Four million patients are annually treated with blood derived products in Europe alone, given by voluntary donors. Yet, as little as 2-3% of the population is registered as blood donor and donor numbers are decreasing during the last decades. At the same time, the demand for specific blood products is increasing. Hence, it is crucial that a country’s donor pool is sufficient to ensure access to every needed blood type and plasma product. Targeted recruitment and retention of donors is vital to meet these demands. Aim. LEARN-DO intends to develop and market a fun and interactive knowledge intervention to stimulate key motivators and overcome key barriers for individuals to become a blood donor. Approach. We target two main stakeholder groups with this intervention. Individuals (children and adults) who can be potential future donors and blood collection agencies that need to recruit future donors to meet the demands for blood products. We propose three installation elements that manipulate key barriers and motivators of blood donation. A Donor Picture Pillar that provides information about blood donation and shows patient and donor stories. A "Donation Experience" to decrease fears and psychological distance towards blood donation and a Conversation Couch to stimulate talking about donation among participants. Organisation and Impact. The project is organised in four work Packages (WP). The overarching project management (WP1, led by the PI at the host institute) will ensure that the impact proposition will include all scientific (WP2), technical/education (WP3) and business (WP4) aspects. LEARN-DO can thoroughly change the recruitment of future donors and improve the recruitment strategy of blood collection agencies by making them more evidence-based, fun and interactive and targeted to specific groups, including families and members from ethnic minorities.

This is a project for higher education student and staff mobility between Programme Countries and Partner Countries. Please consult the website of the organisation to obtain additional details.

Humans are rapidly transforming natural ecosystems into urban areas, leading to an alarming loss of biodiversity, in particular in the tropics. Some of this biodiversity loss could be mitigated if species are able to adapt to these evolutionary novel urban environments. An important aspect of urban success concerns adaptation to a sensory environment that is heavily affected by acoustic noise and artificial light pollution. Animals can for instance alter their sexual signals to optimally attract mates in the novel urban habitats. However, such change in sexual traits may at the same time attract more unwanted eavesdroppers, such as predators and parasites. The aim of this proposal is to understand whether and how sexual communication signals can adapt to the urban environment. The first research objective addresses how signal traits can change in response to the altered sensory environment of cities. The second research objective addresses how signal change affects both attraction of mates and unwanted eavesdroppers present in urban areas. For the first objective, the researcher, Wouter Halfwerk, will be trained by the host to adopt a trait-based approach. He will record sexual signals of male túngara frogs and assess whether signal components differ between urban and forest habitat and whether these differences are related to differences in sensory environment. For the second objective, he will receive training in the field of the evolution of species interactions. He will play urban and forest recorded signals in urban and forest environments to test their attractiveness to females as well as predatory bats and parasitic flies. The training and research experience will enhance the researcher's knowledge in both fields and will put him at the forefront of studies on urban ecology and signal adaptation. The action will thus greatly enhance his chances of returning to the EU with the ultimate goal to start his own research group.