Medical

Spinal implant could one day let paralyzed people walk again

Spinal implant could one day let paralyzed people walk again
EPFL's soft-and-stretchy e-Dura implant (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
EPFL's soft-and-stretchy e-Dura implant (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
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EPFL's soft-and-stretchy e-Dura implant (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
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EPFL's soft-and-stretchy e-Dura implant (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
The e-Dura is designed to be implanted on the spinal cord or cortex, beneath the dura mater (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
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The e-Dura is designed to be implanted on the spinal cord or cortex, beneath the dura mater (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
The implant consists of a silicone substrate, cracked-gold conducting tracks leading to electrodes made from a silicon/platinum microbead composite, and a microfluidic channel (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
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The implant consists of a silicone substrate, cracked-gold conducting tracks leading to electrodes made from a silicon/platinum microbead composite, and a microfluidic channel (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
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Three years ago, scientists at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) reported success in getting rats with severed spinal cords to walk again. They did so by suspending the animals in a harness, then using implants to electrically stimulate neurons in their lower spinal cord. Although this ultimately resulted in the rats being able to run on their previously-paralyzed hind legs, the technology still wasn't practical for long-term use in humans. Thanks to new research conducted at EPFL, however, that may no longer be the case.

In the original study, the rats were first injected with chemicals that replaced the neurotransmitters that could no longer reach their hind legs. Electrical stimulation was then delivered below the location at which the spinal cord had been cut, using electrodes that had been implanted onto the outermost layer of the spinal canal in that region.

This caused their hind legs to move, albeit involuntarily. After a period of training, however, the rats learned to activate the electrical impulses with their brains, allowing them to walk and run voluntarily – while still being supported by the harness, that is. Eventually, they even started forming new neuronal connections between the brain and the lower spine, circumventing the cut in the spinal cord.

Although the researchers hoped that the technology could eventually find use in a rehabilitative neuroprosthetic system for humans, there was at least one stumbling block – the implants, which weren't as soft and flexible as the biological tissue surrounding them. Over time this could cause irritation, which would in turn lead to inflammation, the build-up of scar tissue, and ultimately rejection.

Now, however, the scientists have created a new type of implant which addresses that issue. It's known as the e-Dura, as it's designed to be implanted on the spinal cord or cortex, beneath the dura mater – that's the protective envelope that surrounds the nervous system.

The e-Dura is designed to be implanted on the spinal cord or cortex, beneath the dura mater (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)
The e-Dura is designed to be implanted on the spinal cord or cortex, beneath the dura mater (Photo: EPFL/Alain Herzog)

The implant consists of a stretchy silicone substrate, covered in cracked-gold conducting tracks leading to electrodes made from a silicon/platinum microbead composite. Those electrodes deliver a current, plus they can detect electrical impulses (such as those that would be used to move the legs) in the brain. Additionally, a microfluidic channel in the substrate is able to deliver the chemicals that were formerly injected by hand.

All of these components remain functional while also being highly flexible, allowing them to stretch and deform with the dura mater instead of rubbing or pressing against it. In lab tests, e-Duras implanted in rats caused no problems even after two months – according to EPFL, traditional implants "would have caused significant nerve tissue damage" within that same amount of time.

The scientists are now looking towards human trials, and are further developing the e-Dura for commercialization. A paper on their research was recently published in the journal Science.

Source: EPFL via Robohub

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3 comments
3 comments
asdf
Awesome work. I look forward to the day people who have lost a limb are able to use mechanical replacements. Speaking of which, now we're another step closer to cyborgs!
Ian Maclennan
I thought this was essentially accomplished in humans already... 23-year-old Ian Burkhart, paralysed four years ago, is the first of five to try out the Neurobridge system developed by a team at Battelle, a non-profit group in Ohio focussing on spinal cord technology. http://www.gizmag.com/quadriplegic-brain-implant-neurobridge/32692/ He essentially had full hand control after having the surgery. I notice some differences but surely this Neurobridge is closer to real world implication? I could be wrong, just remembered seeing this. =)
StWils
Ian, not every iteration of a solution completely solves the problem. Flexible devices are a lot closer and probably a lot more agreeable for the surgeon to implant as well as for the patient to gain function again.