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Biomedical Applications V: Influence of Carbon Nanotubes in Neuronal Living Networks
Published in Giorgia Pastorin, carbon nanotubes, 2019
Electrical stimulation of neuronal cells is widely employed in basic neuroscience research, in neural prostheses33 and in clinical therapy (e.g., treatment of Parkinson's disease, dystonia and chronic pain).34 These applications require an implanted microelectrode array (MEA) with the capacity to stimulate neurons. Neuroprosthetic devices currently face various issues, including (i) long-term inflammatory response of the neuronal tissues, resulting in neuron depletion around the electrodes and their replacement with reactive astrocytes that prevent signal transduction; (ii) delamination and degradation of thin metal electrodes; (iii) miniaturisation of the electrodes and (iv) mechanical compliance with neuronal tissues for long-term performance. Currently, semiconductor devices can only partially solve some of these problems. Nevertheless, CNTs are excellent candidates for MEA applications because of their unique set of properties which offer the possibility of constructing small electrodes with high current density.
Medical device implants for neuromodulation
Published in Ze Zhang, Mahmoud Rouabhia, Simon E. Moulton, Conductive Polymers, 2018
A neuroprosthetic technology for movement consists of three main components: a sensor to record brain signals, a signal processor to decode the intended movement from the neural signals, and an effector that can be physical (e.g., a robotic limb) or virtual (e.g., a cursor) to implement the intended movement. Neuroprosthetic devices present similar technical and biological challenges as neuromodulation, including electrode technology, signal longevity, the inflammatory response of brain tissue to electrodes or sensors, patient safety, miniaturization, and durability, and the reader is encouraged to consult the literature on this topic (e.g., Lee et al. 2013). In the future, as technology develops and our understanding of brain physiology advances, neuromodulation and neuroprosthetics will likely be combined to improve patient lives.
Advances in Neuroprosthetics
Published in Chang S. Nam, Anton Nijholt, Fabien Lotte, Brain–Computer Interfaces Handbook, 2018
After implanting microelectrode arrays into the somatosensory cortex of an individual paralyzed by spinal cord trauma (Flesher et al. 2016), the electrodes generated microstimulation that was shown to generate tactile sensations reported by subject as taking place on his hand. Moreover, the patient experienced varying levels of pressure in relation to stimulus amplitude, suggesting the possibility that the neurotechnology reported could allow those with paralysis, amputations, or stroke could interact with objects through a system comprising a robotic hand and intracortical microstimulation neuroprosthesis (see Chapter 14 [by Melissa M. Smith et al., “Utilizing Subdermal Electrodes as a Noninvasive Alternative for Motor-Based BCIs”] and Chapter 15 [by Philip R. Kennedy et al., “Validation of Neurotrophic Electrode Long-Term Recordings in Human Cortex”]).
Elective amputation and neuroprosthetic limbs
Published in The New Bioethics, 2021
The ability to research, design, and fabricate assistive technologies, including prosthetic limbs, has improved dramatically since such bodily components, like the 2000-year-old Capua Leg (Finch et al.2012) and the 3000-year-old Greville Chester toe (Finch 2011), were first created. One area of prosthetic technology in which relatively rapid innovation has been made is in the field of neuroprosthetics; ‘devices that can either act as a substitute for a motor, sensory or cognitive modality that might perhaps have been damaged as a result of an injury or a disease, or they can add new modalities’ (Warwick 2018, p. 1). In the past decade, developments in neuroprosthetic limb technology, such as the LUKE Arm (George et al.2019) and agonist-antagonist myoneural interfaces (Clites et al.2018b), have reshaped the field of study and brought closer the functioning of these artificial bodily components to their biological counterparts. According to DeTOP1 project coordinator Christian Cipriani, when discussing neuroprostheses, ‘[r]eality is quickly moving towards science fiction!’ (European Commission 2019). Developments have meant that the possibility of an artificial limb matching the utility of its biological counterpart is no longer relegated to the fantastical but is rather a distinct possibility.