I have an academic training in physiology and neuroscience gained at Universities in UK, Europe and USA. I have been a Professor for ten years. I arrived at UEL in 2005 and have developed a successful research team with a vision to improve quality of life following stroke, brain injury, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord and peripheral nerve damage. Together with international collaborators in the EU and USA, we are developing new techniques involving robotics and transcranial brain stimulation to aid rehabilitation in these situations.

Qualifications

• 1994  PCTHE, University of Leeds
• 1987  PhD, University of Birmingham
• 1983  BSc, University of Birmingham

PostDoctoral Training

• 1993-1994 Senior Research Fellow, Univ. Wisconsin–Madison, USA
• 1990-1992 Senior Research Fellow, University College London
• 1988-1990 Research Fellow, University of Berne, Switzerland

Research Career

• 2002-2004 Sport Science Research Centre Director, Univ. Surrey - Roehampton
• 1998-2002 Exercise Medicine Research Centre Director, LSBU
• 1994-1998 Lecturer in Physiology, University of Leeds

Recent Public Lectures

• National Spinal Cord Injury Unit, Stoke Mandeville Hospital (2010) "Robots and Motor Adaptation to Novel Tasks in Health and Disease"
• Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston, USA (2008) “Using TMS and tDCS to understand the motor cortex control of upper arm muscles during robot-induced force fields in order to design effective stroke rehabilitation”.
• School of Psychology, University of Liverpool (2008) “Motor Cortex Plasticity during Robot-Assisted Motor Adaptation”.
• School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham (2007) “The Role of the Motor Cortex in Reaching during Robot-Induced Force Fields”.
• School of Health Science and Rehabilitation, University of Southampton (2006) “Motor Control of Upper Arm Muscles during Robot-Assisted Learning”.

Professor of Restorative Neuroscience and Rehabilitation. I lead research development in the Professional Health Sciences such as Physiotherapy and Podiatric Medicine. I represent the School on several NHS Trust collaborations. My research team pursue postgraduate qualifications at Masters and PhD level. Members of the team have a variety of backgrounds ranging from physiotherapy practice, motor neuroscience, exercise sciences, engineering and computer sciences.

• Restorative Neuroscience
• Motor Control and Adaptation
• Plasticity and Learning
• Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)
• Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)
• Neuroimaging with combined TMS-EEG
• Robotics and Virtual Reality for Stroke Rehabilitation

• Masters Physiotherapy

• Hunter, T, Sacco, P, Nitsche, MA and Turner, DL (2009) Effect of transcranial direct current stimulation on motor adaptation to force fields. J. Physiology, 587, 2949.
• Jones, DA, Turner, DL, McIntyre, DB and Newham, DJ (2009) Energy turnover in relation to slowing of contractile properties during fatiguing contractions of the human anterior tibialis muscle. J. Physiology, 587, 4329.
• Sacco, P., Turner, D.L., Rothwell, R.C. and Thickbroom, G. A. (2008) Corticomotor responses to triple-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation: Effects of interstimulus interval and stimulus intensity. Brain Stimulation. 2, 36.
• Turner DL., Sacco, P and Hunter, T (2008) Complex motor cortex control of muscle synergies underpin simple reaching tasks in robot-induced force fields. IET Journal of Control Theory and Application. UKCCC Meeting, Manchester 2008. 
• Green , DA., Bowtell, J and Turner, DL (2008) Electrical percutanaeous tibial stimulation modulates within-a-breath respiratory drive in man. Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology. 161, 214.
  Mitchell, GS, Turner, DL, Henderson, DR and Foley, KT (2008) Spinal serotonin recptor activation modulates the exercise ventilatory response with increased dead space. Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology, 161, 230

• Mileva, K., Green, DA & Turner, DL (2004) Modulation of cutaneous reflexes during cycling in man: EMG and biomechanical responses to sural nerve stimulation. Experimental Brain Research, 158, 450-464.
• Garland, S.W., Newham, D.J., & Turner, D.L. (2004) The amplitude of the slow component of oxygen uptake is related to muscle contractile properties. European Journal of Applied Physiology. 91,192-198.
• Turner, D.L. and Stewart J.D. (2004) Associative conditioning with leg cycling and inspiratory resistance enhances the exercise ventilatory response in humans. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 93, 333-339.
• Mileva, K. & Turner, D.L. (2003) Modulation of human ankle plantar and dorsi-flexor activity during bicycling with different pedal crank lengths. Experimental Brain Research, 152, 393-403.
• Jackson, S.W. & Turner, D.L. (2003) Prolonged muscle vibration reduces maximal voluntary knee extension performance in both the ipsilateral and the contralateral limb in man. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 88, 380-386.
• Sumners, D.P. & Turner, D.L. (2003) Long term modulation of the leg exercise ventilatory response is not elicited by hypercapnic arm exercise. Respiratory Physiology and Neurobiology, 138,107-114.
• Turner, D.L. & Jackson, S.W. (2002) Resistive loaded breathing has a functional impact on isometric contractions in man. Neuroscience Letters, 326, 77-80.
• Turner, D.L. (2002). Expiratory resistive loaded breathing increases fluctuations of force production in submaximal isometric quadriceps contractions. Neuroscience Letters, 328, 13-16.
• Turner, D.L. & Sumners, P. (2002) Associative conditioning of the exercise ventilatory response in humans Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology, 132, 159-168.
• Zhang, T. & Turner, D.L. (2001) A visuomotor reaction time task increases the irregularity and complexity of inspiratory airflow pattern in man. Neuroscience Letters, 297, 41-44.