Cook Lab-Info
Our laboratory currently includes an associate scientist, research specialist, two PhD students, a Master’s student and a Post Doc. In addition, several undergraduate students participate in both credit and non-credit programs — all contributing to the research process. The Cook lab also has collaborations with colleagues at UW Hospital and Clinics, UW School of Medicine and Public Health, the Waisman Center, and UW Department of Psychiatry.
 | Dane Cook, PhD
Principal Investigator Dr. Dane B. Cook is a Professor of Kinesiology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a Health Science Specialist/Research Physiologist at the William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital. He also holds an adjunct appointment within the War Related Illness and Injury Study Center of the New Jersey VA Health Care System. Dr. Cook is Director of the Exercise Science laboratory at the VA Madison and Co-Director of the Exercise Psychology laboratory at UW–Madison. He is the current sitting Chair and Director of the Marsh Center for Research in Exercise and Movement. Dr. Cook’s research focuses on the psychobiology (i.e. the relationships between biology and behavior) of exercise with a specific focus on how exercise influences biology, behavior, and brain health. A critical element of this research is the study of pain, fatigue, mental health and cognition in both healthy men and women and those suffering from diseases including Gulf War illness (GWI), myalgic encephalomyelitis / chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, Alzheimer’s disease, and post-acute sequelae of sars-coV-2 (PASC/Long-COVID).These studies combine exercise science and brain imaging methods to test the interactions between symptoms, brain structure & function, gut microbiota, and the immune system. Dr. Cook’s research has received continuous federal funding for the past ~20 years principally from the Department of Veterans Affairs, National Institutes of Health, and Department of Defense. His laboratory is currently testing how acute exercise influences autonomic, immune and brain responses during pain and cognitive challenges – a mechanistic study of post exertion malaise in Gulf War Illness (Merit Review Grant Award: I01CX0011329) and the effects of acute exercise on brain inflammation and gut dysbiosis (Merit Review Grant Award: I01CX002616). Dr. Cook’s students study a range of exercise psychology topics including aging and dementia, chronic pain and fatigue, and post-exertional malaise. |
Research Staff
 | Aaron Stegner, Associate Scientist I have been a Badger and member of the Exercise Psychology Laboratory for almost 30 years. Prof. William Morgan served as my graduate advisor, and I received my PhD from UW–Madison in 2004. After a short stint as a Lecturer in the Educational Psychology and Kinesiology Departments, I began a postdoctoral appointment with Prof. Dane Cook working on two federally funded projects designed to better understand pain processing and modulation in patients with chronic medically-unexplained muscle pain. In my current position, I have served as the administrator of a series of projects funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, including two ongoing studies focused on the phenomenon of post-exertional malaise in chronic multisymptom illnesses. These current projects are intended to identify potential mechanisms of the maintenance of post-exertional malaise in Veterans suffering from Gulf War illness and Long COVID. When I am not in the lab, I enjoy spending time with my family, cheering on Badger athletics, getting outside, reading, and drinking good beer. |
 | Susen Schroeder, Research Specialist
I have been a Research Specialist with the Exercise Psychology lab since 2018. I received my MS in Communication Sciences and Disorders from UW–Madison and I have over 20 years of experience working in research and especially working with vulnerable populations. Within the lab, my focus is on recruitment efforts for our studies involving Gulf War Veterans, individuals with Chronic Multisymptom Illnesses or Long Covid. Outside the lab, I enjoy spending time with my family, playing tennis and board games, and occasionally training for a marathon. |
 | Brady Rieder, Research Neuroscientist After receiving a BS in Philosophy and Religious and Intellectual History from UW, I was awarded my PhD degree in Neuroscience under the tutelage of Dr. Giulio Tononi. Later, as a scientist for the UW Department of Psychiatry, and as Assistant Director of the Wisconsin Institute for Sleep and Consciousness (WISC), I was instrumental in establishing one of the world’s first multiunit high-density electroencephalography (hdEEG) translational sleep facilities, using hdEEG as an imaging tool to understand the basic mechanisms of sleep and consciousness. In addition to helping to develop many of the analytic techniques currently being widely used to explore the spatiotemporal dynamics of neural activity during local sleep and waking, I was a principal contributor to the seminal development of a closed-loop system for the non-pharmacological enhancement of sleep. Now, as a member of the Exercise Psychology Laboratory working with Dr. Cook, I am excited to be expanding my expertise to include using a broader range of neuroimaging techniques and exploring unique psychobiological datasets. My central focus will be using exercise as a systemic challenge to elucidate the mechanisms of chronic multi-symptom disorders and hopefully developing treatment options for afflicted Veterans and civilians. Outside of the laboratory, I enjoy traveling with my family, spending time with friends, eating good food, drinking craft beer, golf, bowling, competing at anything, relaxing with my Bernese Mountain Dog or either of my two cats, and rooting for Liverpool (YNWA!). |
Graduate Students
 | Jacob Ninneman, Doctoral Student I received my BS in Kinesiology from UW–Madison in 2014 and my MS in Exercise Psychology in 2020. I am currently a PhD student and achieved dissertator status in 2022. My research interests grew from my time here as an athlete and subsequent time working in strength and conditioning; I wanted to contribute to the understanding of head injuries and how they might lead to negative behaviors later in life. Importantly, I wanted to understand the role of preventative factors, including physical activity, in mitigating these consequences. My interests have since broadened and revolve around using neuroimaging to understand behavior in chronic multi-symptom illnesses (CMI; e.g. Long COVID, ME/CFS) but have maintained a focus on how lifestyle factors might work as a treatment through neurobiological mechanisms. If not in the lab, I can be found playing with my daughter, either of my two dogs, or engaging in many types of physical activity. As I have aged, I have found a new passion for long distance running and am currently training to run a half marathon. |
 | Alex Boruch, Doctoral Student
I am originally from La Crosse, WI, and I graduated from UW–Madison in 2018 with a degree in Psychology. After spending a year working in clinical oncology at the UW Carbone Cancer Center, I joined Dr. Cook’s lab in 2019. I completed my master’s degree in the Spring of 2022, with my thesis project investigating the role of acute exercise on gene expression and symptom responses in Gulf War Illness. I am currently pursuing my PhD under Dr. Cook, and my specific research interests focus on the role of exercise and epigenetics to understand the pathophysiology of chronic multi-symptom illnesses and post-deployment health in Veterans. Beyond research, I enjoy hunting, fishing, skiing, working out, watersports, and reading biographies. This is my first semester serving as a TA for Kinesiology 350, and I am looking forward discussing exercise psychology and psychobiology in greater depth! |
 | Gunnar Roberge, Master’s Student I received my BS in Kinesiology & Neurobiology from UW–Madison in 2020 and have been a member of the Exercise Psychology Lab since 2018. My research interests are vast, but I am mainly focused on the pathophysiology and treatment of chronic multi-symptom illnesses such as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, Gulf War Illness, and post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (AKA “Long Covid”). My current training is focused on using neuroimaging techniques to study the effects of exercise on mechanisms of chronic widespread pain. In addition to science stuff, I enjoy finding good food and drink, cooking, entertaining, attempting DIY projects, and occasionally fending off bears in the wilderness with other lab members! |
 | Grace Branchaw, Master’s Student I received my BA in Human Physiology from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities in May of 2022. I am originally from the Madison area, so it’s fun to come back and be a part of the university I grew up by. I am currently exploring how exercise impacts the autonomic regulation of cerebral blood flow responses in chronically ill individuals (Gulf War illness) and if such regulation impacts their behavioral outcomes. In the future, I hope to expand upon this work in a different population of active individuals, specifically marathon runners, and test the impacts on psychological outcomes and performance. Outside the lab you’ll find me running on the road or trails, hiking around new parks, or spending time with my family. |
https://neurosciencenews.com/chronic-pain-gulf-war-syndrome-20821/
https://bioengineer.org/chronic-pain-in-gulf-war-veterans-linked-to-brain-structure-changes/
https://www.meaction.net/2019/11/06/meet-the-scientist-dr-dane-cook
https://education.wisc.edu/student-life/student-stories/movement-as-medicine-in-portugal