The winner of Physics World IOP Publishing, named researchers in Switzerland who developed technology to show paraplegics walking again. Robotics and AI are disruptions. An area in turbocharger mode is the vision that paraplegics can move again. The deaf can hear. The mute talk. Some have a vision that the blind can see. The key components are:
- Capture brain signals.
- Interpret those signals
- Use the signals to provide motion, sound or vision.
This is not 5 or 10 years away – it is happening today although widespread use could be more than 5 years away
A Swiss–French team led by Grégoire Courtine at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Jocelyne Bloch at Lausanne University Hospital and EPFL and Guillaume Charvet at CEA-Leti won the Physics World 2023 Breakthrough of the Year. The innovation is development of a digital bridge that restores communication between the brain and spinal cord. When tested on a man with paralysis, the system enabled him to stand and walk naturally.
A video of a Parkinson’s patient went viral in early November 2023. Marc, 62, was able to walk almost normally again, rather than “freezing” at every foot step thanks to a neural implant.
A few months earlier, a man who’d been left paralyzed by an accident regained the ability to move his legs again using only his thought commands. The secret in both these cases is a system of flexible electrodes implanted directly on the patients’ spinal cords. These implants relay brain signals across the injured area and onto the patients’ limbs.
Researchers Focused on Paraplegics Walking Again
| Institution/Company | Country | Research Stage | Years since start | Website | Video |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) | USA | Preclinical (animal testing) | 20 | Stemcell UCLA | |
| Stanford University | USA | Preclinical (animal testing) | 15 | Stanford University | |
| University of Pittsburgh | USA | Preclinical (animal testing) | 10 | Pitt Uni | |
| Heidelberg University | Germany | Preclinical (animal testing) | 12 | University of Heldelberg | |
| Karolinska Institutet | Sweden | Preclinical (animal testing) | 8 | Ki.Se | |
| NeuroRestore™ by Onward Rehabilitation | USA | Clinical trials (Phase 1/2) | 5 | onwd | |
| BIONIC | Switzerland | Clinical trials (Phase 1/2) | 8 | https://youtu.be/qtmAaXY7-yw? | |
| Epigenomics AG | Germany | Clinical trials (Phase 1) | 4 | Medical.net | |
| Caltech | USA | Early research (proof-of-concept) | 3 | Caltechn | |
| Mayo Clinic | USA | Early research (proof-of-concept) | 2 | MayoClinic | |
| Neuralink | USA | Clinical Trials human | 5 | Neuralink | |
| Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) | Switzerland | Clinical Trials | 10 | ||
| Paradromics | USA | Pre-Clinical Trials | 8 (2015) | Paradromics.com | https://youtu.be/8grAaVBGGoA? |
Some have videos.
Videos
New Scientist YouTube https://youtu.be/dTZ83SEQFDQ
Neuralink
Neuralink, one of Elon Musk’s companies, moved to human clinical trials in September 2023. Candidates will have cervical spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neuralink includes robotic surgery to implant a 1,024 node interface into the brain. Hand surgery is not precise enough. Once implanted, the system provides gigabit communication with external devices. The nodes are smaller than human hair, hence the robotic approach. In contrast, EPFL uses just 64 nodes.
Neuralink initial aim is to build devices designed to help people who have paralysis. The treatment of a range of neurological disorders is to restore sensory and movement function. Longterm, Neuralink has stated the goal to expand the product into the general population.
The brain-computer interface (BCI) implant is in a region of the brain that controls the intention to move. First focus is to control their thoughts. Subsequent goals are to interface a unit into the spinal column, down from the break for para and quadriplegic people.
First Human Implant
Paradromics
Based out of Austin, Paradromics is working on a novel device called the Connexus Direct Data Interface. Like neurolink, it is many tiny electrodes implanted directly into the brain tissue. The implant records and translates neural signals, which are sent to external devices via a transceiver installed under the skin in the chest. They expect a 10-year life of the device that can have up to 1600 direct neuron connections.
Their systems might be available after 2028.
More Reading
- Lorach, H., Galvez, A., Spagnolo, V. et al. Walking naturally after spinal cord injury using a brain–spine interface. Nature618, 126–133 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-023-06094-5
- Rowald, A., Komi, S., Demesmaeker, R. et al. Activity-dependent spinal cord neuromodulation rapidly restores trunk and leg motor functions after complete paralysis. Nat Med 28, 260–271 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-021-01663-5
- Landmark trial aims to help people with spinal cord injury walk again 2021 https://www.spinalcure.org.au/news/landmark-trial-aims-to-help-people-with-spinal-cord-injury-walk-again/
- New neurological target to help people walk again after a spinal cord injury. 2023 Medical Express https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-04-neurological-people-spinal-cord-injury.html
- Spinal implants let three people who were paralysed walk with support 2022 New Scientist https://www.newscientist.com/article/2307365-spinal-implants-let-three-people-who-were-paralysed-walk-with-support/
Brain Implants
Here is a list of implants – and this will increase rapidly
| Company Name | Website | Implant Type | Commercialization Phase | Special Application |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NeuroPace | https://www.neuropace.com/ | RNS® System | Approved (FDA) | Epilepsy (closed-loop stimulation for seizure control) |
| Medtronic | https://www.medtronic.com/us-en/index.html | DBS (Deep Brain Stimulation) | Approved (FDA) | Movement disorders (Parkinson’s, dystonia, essential tremor) |
| Boston Scientific | https://www.bostonscientific.com/en-US/Home.html | Vercise Genus DBS system | Approved (FDA) | Movement disorders (Parkinson’s, dystonia, tremor) |
| Abbott | https://www.abbott.com/ | Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) | Approved (FDA) | Movement disorders (Parkinson’s, dystonia, tremor) |
| NeuroSky | https://neurosky.com/ | MindWave Mobile Headset | Available | Brain-computer interface (BCI) for cognitive training and gaming |
| Emotiv | https://www.emotiv.com/ | Epoc+ Mobile EEG Headset | Available | BCI for emotional recognition, cognitive training, and research |
| NextMind | https://ar.snap.com/welcome-nextmind | Dry EEG Neuro-Interface | Early development | BCI for hands-free computer control and augmented reality |
| Synchron | https://synchron.com/ | Stentrode Brain-Computer Interface | Investigational (Phase II clinical trial) | BCI for paralysis restoration and communication |
| Neuralink | https://neuralink.com/ | N1 Neural Interface | Early development | BCI for various applications, including paralysis restoration, cognitive enhancement, and communication |
| Kernel | https://www.kernel.com/ | Kernel Flow BCI Platform | Research and development | BCI for sensory restoration (vision) and cognitive enhancement |
