Cerebello-Cortical Connectivity and Balance Adaptation in Younger and Older Adults

This study will investigate how communication between the cerebellum and cerebral cortex contributes to balance control and adaptation in younger and older adults. The study will enroll healthy younger adults ages 21-35 years and older adults ages 65-95 years. Participants will complete a single testing session that includes clinical balance assessments, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), electroencephalography (EEG), electromyography (EMG), and reactive balance testing using an instrumented treadmill. Cerebello-cortical connectivity will be measured before and after reactive balance testing using cerebellar brain inhibition (CBI) and the cerebellar TMS-evoked potential P80. The study will examine how these measures relate to cortical activity, balance recovery, and adaptation across repeated perturbations, and whether these relationships differ between younger and older adults.