Ricardo Mesquita

Ricardo is a postdoctoral researcher at the Division of Clinical Physiology (Department of Laboratory Medicine) since January 2025. His work focuses on understanding how motor circuits in the brain and spinal cord control our muscles, and in how we can use this knowledge to improve muscle function in health and disease. He works in close collaboration with clinicians at the Department of Neurophysiology at Karolinska Hospital Huddinge, contributing to translational research bridging basic neurophysiology and clinical practice.

With a background in sports science and neuromuscular physiology, his research combines advanced human neurophysiology techniques, including surface and intramuscular electromyography, recordings of neuromuscular activity in response to magnetic and electrical stimulation, tendon vibration and respiratory physiology methods - to investigate motor unit behavior and neural control mechanisms in vivo.

Ricardo’s academic path has taken him through Portugal, the UK, Finland, Canada, Australia, and Sweden. He completed his undergraduate degree in Sports Science at Faculdade de Motricidade Humana in Portugal, pursued a master’s degree in Biology of Physical Activity at the University of Jyväskylä in Finland, and obtained his PhD focusing on motoneuron physiology from Edith Cowan University in Australia.

Ricardo also holds an adjunct lecturer position at Edith Cowan University (Australia), is a member of the council of the International Society of Electrophysiology & Kinesiology and contributes to an online platform for scientific dissemination in Sports Science (YLM SportScience).

External research funding (~7.2 MSEK / ~€680 000):
• 2026–2028: Region Stockholm (SE),  CIMED Project grant (Junior)
• 2026–2028: Region Stockholm (SE),  ALF Medicine
• 2026–2027: Swedish National Space Agency (SE), E-Space Exploration Research
• 2023–2026: The Swedish Research Council for Sport Science (SE), Postdoctoral Grant
• 2020: Neurotrauma Research Program & Department of Health WA (AU)

Current research supervision
• ERASMUS Mundus SPACEMED master's degree. George Russel - Motor unit number estimation of the human soleus: reliability and the impacts of short-term unloading

•    Quality Assurance Applied to Clinical Research (PhD course)
•    Advanced Exercise Physiology (Executive and professional education for external health care professionals)