Marco Capogrosso, PhD, joined the University of Pittsburgh Department of Neurological Surgery as an assistant professor in January of 2020. He completed his doctoral studies in biomedical engineering and robotics at the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna in Pisa, Italy. His doctorate work focused on the implementation of a computational framework to support the design of peripheral and central neural interfaces for sensory and motor applications.
After the receiving his PhD, Dr. Capogrosso completed his post-doctoral training at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland where he worked on the development of brain spinal interfaces for the restoration of voluntary motor control in animal models of spinal cord injury. Before joining the University of Pittsburgh, he directed his own research group as a research faculty at the primate center of the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. Dr Capogrosso was part of the managing team of the muli-centric primate platform helping direct the activities of the platform and being responsible for the set-up of its laboratories.
Specialized Areas of Interest
Professional Organization Membership
Education & Training
- BA, Physics (cum laude) Università di Pisa, Italy, 2007
- MS, Applied Physics (cum laude) Università di Pisa, Italy, 2009
- PhD, Engineering, Institute of Biorobotics, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, 2013
- Post-Doc, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland, 2016
Honors & Awards
- European Research Council Starting Grant Award, 2019
- Swiss National Science Foundation Ambizione Fellowship, 2016
- Best Post-Doc Paper, NCCR Robotics, 2014, 2016
- Finalist, Tomorrow's PI Prize, Swiss Life Science Annual Meeting, 2015
Selected Publications
Barra B, Badi M, Perich MG, Conti S, Mirrazavi Salehian SS, Moreillon F, Wurth S, Kaeser M, Passeraub P, Milekovic T, Billard A, Micera S, Capogrosso M. A Versatile Robotic Platform for the Design of Natural, Three-Dimensional Reaching and Grasping Tasks in Monkeys. bioRxiv [in press] 2019.
Capogrosso M, Wagner FB, Gandar J, Martin EM, Wenger N, Milekovic T, Shkorbatova P, Pavlova N, Musuenko P, Bezard E, Bloch J and Courtine G. Configuration of electrical spinal cord stimulation through realtime processing of gait kinematics. Nature Protocols 13:s031–2061 (2018).
Capogrosso M, Gandar J, Greiner N, Moraud EM, Wenger N, Shkorbatova P, Мusienko PE, Minev I, Lacour SP, Courtine G. Advantages of soft subdural implants for the delivery of electrochemical neuromodulation therapies to the spinal cord. J Neural Eng 15(2):026024, 2018.
Capogrosso M, Milekovic T, Borton D, Wagner F, Martin Moraud E, Mignardot JB, Buse N, Gandar J, Barraud Q, Xing D, Rey E, Duis S, Yang J, Ko WKD, Qin L, Detemple P, Denison T, Micer S, Beard E, Bloch J, Courtine G. A Brain-spine interface alleviating gait deficits after spinal cord injury in primates. Nature 539(7628):284-288, 2016.
Martin Moraud E, Capogrosso M, Formento E, Wenger N, DiGiovanna J, Courtine G and Micera S. Mechanisms underlying the neuromodulation of spinal circuits for correcting gait and balance deficits after spinal cord injury. Neuron 89:1-15, 2016.
Raspopovic S, Capogrosso M, Petrini FM, Bonizzato M, Rigosa J, Di Pino G, Carpaneto J, Controzzi M, Boretius T, Fernandez E, Granata G, Oddo CM, Citi L, Ciancio AL, Cipriani C, Carrozza MC, Jensen W, Guglielmelli E, Stieglitz T, Rossini PM, Micera S. Restoring natural sensory feedback in real-time bidirectional hand prostheses. Sci Transl Med 6(222):222ra19, 2014.
Capogrosso M, Wenger N, Raspopovic S, Musienko P, Beauparlant J, Bassi Luciani L, Courtine G, Micera S. A computational model for epidural electrical stimulation of spinal sensorimotor circuits. J Neurosci 33(49):19326-40, 2013.
A complete list of Dr. Capogrosso's publications can be reviewed through Google Scholar.
Research Activities
Dr. Capogrosso is director of the University of Pittsburgh Spinal Cord Stimulation Laboratory. His research interests broadly involve the study of the interactions between electrical stimulation and the dynamics of neural circuits. Specifically, he is interested in the use and development of computational models to support the design of effective neurotechnologies with a particular focus on the restoration of restore sensory and motor function after neural damage or disease. For his work he parallels computer simulations with experiments in animal models and human patients.
At the moment he is particularly focused on the development of neurotechnologies for the restoration of arm and hand functions after motor paralysis.