Rui Wang

Rui Wang is an Associate Professor at the Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences (GIH) in the Department of Physical Activity and Health, with a concurrent position at Karolinska Institute in the Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society. Their academic journey includes a PhD from Karolinska Institute (2011-2015) and a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (2018-2020).

Dr. Wang's research focuses on geriatric epidemiology, particularly examining the connections between physical activity, cardiovascular health, and brain function in aging populations. Their work investigates how lifestyle factors influence dementia risk, cognitive decline, and brain health in older adults. Specific areas include vascular risk factors and structural brain characteristics related to dementia, common risk and protective factors between stroke and Alzheimer's disease, neuroimaging markers in small vessel diseases, and the relationship between physical activity, fitness, and executive function in aging populations.

Analysis of Dr. Wang's recent publications (2021-2025) reveals a strong focus on neuroimaging correlates of physical-cognitive relationships, with particular attention to dementia prevention through physical activity and cardiovascular health. Their work spans multiple disciplines including neuroscience, geriatrics, exercise physiology, and public health, with a consistent emphasis on population-based cohort studies and longitudinal analyses.

Dr. Wang teaches courses including Physical Activity and Healthy Brain Functions (7.5 credits), Quantitative Methods (5 credits), and Latent Variable Modelling I. Structural Equation Modelling (7.5 credits) across undergraduate, master's, and doctoral programs. They supervise independent projects at both undergraduate and graduate levels.

Their collaborative network includes established partnerships with the Division of Clinical Geriatrics at Karolinska Institute, the Stress Research Institute at Stockholm University, and the Department of Medicine at Gothenburg University, as well as international collaborators such as Ozioma Okonkwo at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Fuzhong Xue at Shandong University.