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Subject: WIRELESS, IMPLANTED SENSOR BROADENS RANGE OF BRAIN RESEARCH

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH NIH News 
National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
(NIBIB)<http://www.nibib.nih.gov/>
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, March 19, 2013

CONTACT: Karin Lee, 301-496-3500, <e-mail:[log in to unmask]>

WIRELESS, IMPLANTED SENSOR BROADENS RANGE OF BRAIN RESEARCH
NIH-funded breakthrough points toward future rehabilitation options for
people with physical disabilities

A compact, self-contained sensor recorded and transmitted brain activity
data wirelessly for more than a year in early stage animal tests, according
to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. In addition to
allowing for more natural studies of brain activity in moving subjects, this
implantable device represents a potential major step toward cord-free
control of advanced prosthetics that move with the power of thought. The
report is in the April 2013 issue of the Journal of Neural Engineering.

"For people who have sustained paralysis or limb amputation, rehabilitation
can be slow and frustrating because they have to learn a new way of doing
things that the rest of us do without actively thinking about it," said
Grace Peng, Ph.D., who oversees the Rehabilitation Engineering Program of
the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB),
part of NIH. "Brain-computer interfaces harness existing brain circuitry,
which may offer a more intuitive rehab experience, and ultimately, a better
quality of life for people who have already faced serious challenges." 

Recent advances in brain-computer interfaces (BCI) have shown that it is
possible for a person to control a robotic arm
<www.nibib.nih.gov/NewsEvents/News/PressReleases/16May12> through implanted
brain sensors linked to powerful external computers. However, such devices
have relied on wired connections, which pose infection risks and restrict
movement, or were wireless but had very limited computing power.

Building on this line of research, David Borton, Ph.D., and Ming Yin, Ph.D.,
of Brown University, Providence, R.I., and colleagues surmounted several
major barriers in developing their sensor. To be fully implantable within
the brain, the device needed to be very small and completely sealed off to
protect the delicate machinery inside the device and the even more delicate
tissue surrounding it. At the same time, it had to be powerful enough to
convert the brain's subtle electrical activity into digital signals that
could be used by a computer, and then boost those signals to a level that
could be detected by a wireless receiver located some distance outside the
body.  Like all cordless machines, the device had to be rechargeable, but in
the case of an implanted brain sensor, recharging must also be done
wirelessly.

The researchers consulted with brain surgeons on the shape and size of the
sensor, which they built out of titanium, commonly used in joint
replacements and other medical implants. They also fitted the device with a
window made of sapphire, which electromagnetic signals pass through more
easily than other materials, to assist with wireless transmission and
inductive charging, a method of recharging also used in electronic
toothbrushes. Inside, the device was densely packed with the electronics
specifically designed to function on low power to reduce the amount of heat
generated by the device and to extend the time it could work on battery
power.

Testing the device in animal models -- two pigs and two rhesus macaques --
the researchers were able to receive and record data from the implanted
sensors in real time over a broadband wireless connection. The sensors could
transmit signals more than three feet and have continued to perform for over
a year with little degradation in quality or performance. 

The ability to remotely record brain activity data as an animal interacts
naturally with its environment may help inform studies on muscle control and
the movement-related brain circuits, the researchers say. While testing of
the current devices continues, the researchers plan to refine the sensor for
better heat management and data transmission, with use in human medical care
as the goal.

"Clinical applications may include thought-controlled prostheses for
severely neurologically impaired patients, wireless access to motorized
wheelchairs or other assistive technologies, and diagnostic monitoring such
as in epilepsy, where patients currently are tethered to the bedside during
assessment," said Borton. 

Co-authors on this study include Juan Aceros, Ph.D., and Arto Nurmikko,
Ph.D., also of Brown University. 

In addition to a Bioengineering Research Partnership grant from the NIBIB
and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human
Development
(R01EB007401)<http://projectreporter.nih.gov/project_info_description.cfm?ai
d=7236484&icde=15538873>, the researchers also received funding from the
National Science Foundation, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency.

NIBIB's mission is to support multidisciplinary research and research
training at the crossroads of engineering and the biological and physical
sciences. NIBIB supports emerging technology research and development within
its internal laboratories and through grants, collaborations, and training.
More information is available at the NIBIB website:
<http://www.nibib.nih.gov>. 

About the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and
Human Development (NICHD): The NICHD sponsors research on development,
before and after birth; maternal, child, and family health; reproductive
biology and population issues; and medical rehabilitation. For more
information, visit the Institute's website at <http://www.nichd.nih.gov/>. 

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical
research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal
agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical
research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both
common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs,
visit <www.nih.gov>.

NIH...Turning Discovery into Health -- Registered, U.S. Patent and Trademark
Office
-------------
The html version of this news release contains a photo of wireless,
implanted brain sensor
<http://www.nibib.nih.gov/nibib/image/NewsandEvents/News/PressReleases/18Mar
13/DON_2629.jpg>
Caption: Wireless, implantable brain sensor, shown next to a U.S. quarter
for size comparison. Source: David Borton, Ph.D., Brown University

###

This NIH News Release is available online at:
<http://www.nih.gov/news/health/mar2013/nibib-19.htm>.

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