Health and Human Performance
Neurocognitive and Behavioral Development Laboratory (NBDL)
Led by Zheng Wang · Applied Physiology and Kinesiology
What we study
Dr. Wang's lab studies brain and movement issues in children with neurodevelopmental disorders and older adults with autism. They use brain imaging and movement tests to find markers for diagnosis and disease tracking.
What working here is like
- Clinical
- Human participants
- Coding helps
- Project
- 1
- Papers
- 5
Current projects
Novel Atypical Rhythmical Movement Identified in Middle to Old Aged Autistic Adults using Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale Assessment
The lab looks at movement patterns in autistic adults aged 30‑73. By scoring them with the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale, the researchers found a new rhythmic movement that is more common in autistic people than in neurotypical controls, suggesting possible brain connectivity differences.
From the Spring 2025 UF Undergraduate Research Symposium · abstract book, p. 499
Summaries are written by AI in plain language from public symposium abstracts and may be imperfect.
Recent papers, explained
- Neuroanatomical patterns of dementia risk in autism spectrum disorder
2026 · Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience
Checks brain structure and aging in autistic people to see if they face higher dementia risks.
- Atypical Visually Guided Precision Grip Control in Middle‐Aged and Older Autistic Adults
2025 · Autism Research
Tests grip strength in autistic adults to see if they struggle with fine motor skills.
Show 3 more papersShow fewer
- Subcortical brain volume variations in autistic individuals across the lifespan
2025 · Molecular Autism
Compares brain structure changes in autistic and neurotypical people across ages.
- Novel Atypical Rhythmical Movement Identified in Middle-to-Old Aged Autistic Adults using Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) Assessment
2025 · UF Journal of Undergraduate Research
Tests whether autistic adults show a new movement pattern using a Parkinson’s scale.
- Visual feedback and motor memory contributions to sustained motor control deficits in autism spectrum disorder across childhood and into adulthood
2025 · Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Checks if autistic people rely more on visual feedback and memory for motor tasks.
Plain-language summaries are AI-written and reviewed by us; check the paper for details.
How to reach out
Zheng Wang hasn't set up this page yet. You can also look them up in the UF directory (search “Zheng Wang”).