Parkinson's disease can be noticeable through many symptoms: small, slow steps, shaky hands, or an unsteady gait. However, by the time the symptoms become so pronounced, patients have already lost 70 percent of the dopaminergic neurons in their brain. "However, innovative therapies must intervene while a relatively large number of these dopaminergic neurons are still intact," says Martin Giese, Professor of Theoretical Sensorimotor Science at the University of Tübingen. This is why early detection is so important.
Bionic Intelligence
Together with his team, he analyzed the movement behavior of patients with an increased risk of Parkinson's disease and found what he was looking for. "The crucial clue is very subtle changes in symmetry in the movements," he explains. This means that one side of the body doesn't move exactly the same way as the other. This is imperceptible to the human eye, and even the patients themselves don't notice it. But sensors in shoes or trouser pockets can register these small differences in symmetry and detect the disease ten years before the onset of visible symptoms.
This detailed monitoring of disease progression is also important for clinical trials in which new therapeutic approaches are being tested. It's the only way to verify whether, for example, a new gene therapy really works. "You can't do that with conventional methods; they're not sensitive enough," explains Giese.
"In my opinion, there are huge differences between the intelligence in the brain and what artificial intelligence does," says Giese. "Modern AI, such as ChatGPT, basically overwhelms everything with data. It allows you to do things that appear very intelligent. But the effort and computing power behind it are astronomical. The human brain sometimes achieves a similar level of intelligence to AI, albeit with much, much less data. And that's fascinating, in my view."
Martin Giese's focus is on the perception and control of motor actions. In addition to the aforementioned Parkinson's disease, ataxias are also a focus of his research. In these rare diseases, the interaction of different muscle groups is disrupted. Those affected suffer from balance problems and are unable to coordinate their movements well. This is due to damage to the cerebellum.
"Ten years ago, it was still said that these people wouldn't benefit from motor training," Giese recalls. But a physiotherapist he worked with had a different experience. So the researchers developed a special coordination training program. To encourage children to participate, they packaged the exercises into video games. It was a resounding success. "Regular training actually slowed the progression of the disease," explains the neuroscientist.
His colleagues specialize in related fields. Prof. Dr. Daniel Häufle is a biomechanist, and his research group investigates the generation and control of active biological movements. His goal is to one day use functional assistance systems in the field of rehabilitation robotics.
Prof. Dr. Cornelius Schwarz researches the physiology of the cerebral cortex. He primarily works with rodents such as rats and mice. They scan their surroundings with the whiskers arranged around their snouts – much like humans do with their fingertips. Prof. Dr. Ziad Hafed, finally, is a primate physiologist and studies the physiology of the brain stem. His research focuses on the influence of eye movements on visual processing.
What all research groups have in common is that while they conduct basic research, they always keep clinical applications in mind. "In Tübingen, we combine work on patients with technical and physiological expertise," Giese summarizes. "We can map all steps, from theoretical modeling to experiments in rodents, primates, and finally humans. This is something quite special compared to the rest of Germany."