Robert M Erskine

Dr Robert M. Erskine is an exercise physiologist, specialising in the neuromuscular adaptations to exercise, and how genetic variation and nutrition can influence these adaptations. Rob completed his PhD in “The Variable Response of Skeletal Muscle to Resistance Training” at Manchester Metropolitan University in May 2010. During this project, he was the first to document the highly variable response of the human quadriceps muscle to resistance training. In trying to understand why skeletal muscle varies in size and strength, and in the way it adapts to exercise, he studied specific gene variants and found significant associations with the variability in muscle size, strength and power. This work was the first to show that the human ACTN3 R577X gene variant was associated with muscle volume, and that the PTK2 rs7843014 A/C and the PTK2 rs7460 A/T gene variants could explain the variability in skeletal muscle specific force between people. Following his PhD, Rob completed a 12 month post-doctoral position at Loughborough University, where he was responsible for managing an externally funded (GSK) project that investigated the effect of protein supplementation on muscle size and strength gains with resistance training. Three articles relating to this this project have been published in high-impact, international journals. Following this post, Rob took up a second post-doctoral position at Manchester Metropolitan University, where he led two major research projects: (i) the impact of obesity on skeletal muscle and tendon physiology; (ii) the genetic profile of elite athletes. Rob is now Associate Professor in Neuromuscular Physiology and MSc Strength and Conditioning Programme Leader in the School of Sport & Exercise Sciences at Liverpool John Moores University, where understanding the physiological and genetic mechanisms underlying muscle-tendon injuries has become a major focus of his research.