Getting closer to the virtual brain

Henry Markman, a researcher at the  Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (Switzerland) is simulating the architecture, morphology and function of the human neocortex by an IBM supercomputer of the Blue Gene family, which is capable of performing simultaneously thousands of thousands of transactions per second. To do so, he created in 2008 a “digital facsimile” of a cylindrical piece of tissue in the rat cortex, using 10,000 neocortical columns of over 10,000 neocortex neurons in three dimensions, of 200 different genetic types, with data from more than 15,000 neurons in culture. In 2011, the team announced it had simulated a “virtual slice” of brain tissue with one million neurons. Markman hopes to emulate brain function, understanding the neocortex as a 'new brain' created by our species, needed for education, interaction with others and higher intellectual functions, such as emotion or thought.

Evolution of the Blue Brain. Copyright http://bluebrain.epfl.ch

To fully replicate a brain would take a computer a million times more powerful than the Blue Gene, but Markman believes that it will be possible to clone our mental functioning someday, and thus the essence of a humang being. For the moment his project,  called "The Blue Brain Project" will provide a “unifying principle” for scientists to rally around, gathering data from laboratories around the world in one place. An entire division of the project is devoted to creating a new breed of intelligent robots with “neuromorphic” microchips designed like neurons in the human brain. “The biggest success for me,” Dr. Markram said, “would be if after 10 years we have a new model for neuroscience, where everyone works together. It’s about a new foundation.

Source:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/19/science/bringing-a-virtual-brain-to-life.html?smid=pl-share

A microscopic chip records neural activity and release drugs in the brain

A multidisciplinary team from the National Research Council in Spain (CSIC), the Technological Research Centre of Ikerlan and the Engineering Research Institute of Aragon, Zaragoza University, has developed a microscopic probe which can be used to record neuronal activity and deliver drugs at the same time in the brain.

The new device, flexible and biocompatible, is fabricated on a polymer, which can interact at microscopic scales never before achieved. It has been tested experimentally in living rats.

The development, described in a paper published in the journal 'Lab on a Chip', represents a step further in the pharmacological, genetic and electrical intervention in order to study the neuronal activity, as it improves the circuits and miniature devices fabricated on silicon substrates.

"In many cases, detection of epilepsy, Parkinson's and Alzheimer can only be done through semi-chronic electrodes implanted in the brain of patients. Therefore, the technologies used for this purpose must be as least invasive as possible and ensure biocompatibility and the integrity of neuronal circuits adjacent to the implant, "says Liset Menendez de la Prida, scientific coordinator of the project.

New device designed by Spanish researchers

The new device is manufactured on the SU-8 polymer and it is able to integrate analysis of the neuronal activity at microscopic level with the use of fluidic channels for drug application.

"The design diverge from silicon implants, which are more rigid in comparison and still have side effects, something that limited the final expansion of this technique for the development of brain-machine interfaces," says Rosa Villa, a researcher at the Institute of Microelectronics Barcelona.

Ane Altuna, Ikerlan researcher and head of the technological part, states: "We have managed to provide a novel approach in manufacturing and design, which allowed us to integrate the electrodes at the same level as the surface of the polymer. The subsequent integration of the fluidic channels was performed using lithographic techniques and development of an encapsulation system which ensures recording and simultaneous release of the drug. "

Researchers are now looking for companies interested in their patent in order to produce this technology on a large scale. To do this, they have started to design a program in beta phase to test the new device in human users with the aim of designing prototypes oriented to biomedical application.

CSIC press release (in Spanish)

A tour into the micro and nano world of our bodies

I am a fan of TED presentations and, this time, I came across with a nice one about some of the tissues, cells, etc... that conform our bodies. The presentation is given by Dee Breger, a scientific artist specialized in imaging using the scanning electron microscope and I think she did an amazing job taking this pcitures as well as colouring them for educational purposes. Enjoy!

Brain stimulation against anorexia

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) is a technique that has been used for 20 years to alliviate tremors in some cases of Parkinson. More recently, neurosurgeons are exploring the possibility of using it in other conditions such as major depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, or even Alzheimer. This week, the journal 'The Lancet' opens a new possibility by publishing the results of a trial with six patients with chronic anorexia nervosa.

The results are signed by Dr. Andres Lozano, a Sevillian who has been living in Canada for years, where he heads the department of neurosurgery at the University of Toronto.

The study was conducted with six women who had an average of 18 years struggling unsuccessfully against the most severe anorexia, which does not respond to any treatment, posing a serious risk to their life in the short term.

By using a neurosurgery that has already been successfully applied in more than 100,000 patients with Parkinson worldwide, Lozano's team operated on women to implant electrodes inside the brain, connected to an external generator of electrical signals.

The area of ​​the brain where the electrodes where placed is called subcallosal cingulate and it is the same area which is stimulated for treatment of severe cases of depression. In fact, the Spanish researcher explains that five women (aged between 24 and 57 years) have improved mood, reducing anxiety and depression levels. This resulted in three of them having a sustained weight gain just nine months after surgery.

This does not mean that the DBS increased patients' appetite. The electrodes simply improved internal negative aspects of patients, as the state of anxiety and mood, or removed that negativity that prevented girls from eating more and gaining weight. Anorexia is a very complex disease; it is not only that the person doesn't want to eat, but also the fact that they refuse to do so because there is a problem with their perception of reality. In any case, the results of this study open a door of hope for severe cases of anorexia, of which about 20% have a very high mortality risk.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21674836

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/780339

Rex, the bionic man

Technology is turning into reality many of the utopias of science fiction and shortens time between what writers imagine and what scientists can do. The latest example is Rex, the first fully bionic man, which apparently has much in common with Steve Austin, the artificial man who starred the seventies television series called The Man of The Six Million. 

The bionic man is being built from $1,000,000 of limbs and organs by leading UK roboticists Richard Walker and Matthew Godden. All his vital organs were built in a laboratory and it is considered to be the most complete bionic man achieved by science so far.

This bionic man, on display in the Science Museum in London, has also synthetic blood and robotic limbs. With a face that resembles humanity, Rex incorporates some of the latest advances in prosthetic technology: - A prosthetic foot and ankle developed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Hugh Herr), - A SynCardia Systems artificial heart - A bionic ear from Macquaire University in Sydney - An eye made of a camera mounted in Rex's glasses and an artificial kideny from University of California - An artificial trachea, first received by a cancer sufferer in 2011, from Royal Free Hospital, London - A spleen from Yale, Connecticut. - An artificial pancreas from De Montfort University, Leicester One of the experts who participated in its construction, Richard Walker, told the BBC that the result of the work is "very significant", since it has allowed to know "how close are prosthetic technology to rebuild the whole human body." "There are some vital organs missing, like the stomach, but 60 to 70 percent of a human has effectively been rebuilt" said Walker. Bertolt Meyer, one of the creators of Rex who was born without a right hand and wears a bionic prosthesis, said that "the great promise of technology is that it can wipe out disabilities." 

However, technology developers claim that not all technology is useful for replacing body parts. For example, hands can not move without bionic human muscle and brain signals. “What we are beginning to achieve is building prostheses which look like human body parts, but we are a long way away from making ones which relay sensory information the way the human body does.” Once medical science improves, as it inevitably will, Meyer says the next step will be tackling the sticky ethical issues which will arise. “Should I be allowed to cut off my real hand and replace it with something, does that give me an unfair advantage over people who cannot afford this?” asks Meyer. “I’m not saying that is going to happen but these are questions that should be on the table before that technology becomes available.”. 

http://www.euronews.com/2013/02/12/meet-rex-the-world-s-first-real-bionic-man/

Bone Conduction Implant, a new approach for BAHA

In the 70's, the Swedish researchers at Sahlgrenska University Hospital and Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg developed original bone anchored hearing aids (known as BAHA for its acronym in English) which are used today by thousands of hearing impaired. Designed for those with a healthy cochlea in the inner ear, but with one of the several conditions that prevent the sound to reach it, the ​​original implants anchored in the bone use a small titanium screw implanted behind the ear to resonate against bones and send sound waves to the cochlea.

           

People behind the original BAHA decided that, thanks to the newly available technology, a new approach that would involve a totally implanted component could overcome the negative aspects of the bone anchored devices, such as infection and loose screws. The new bone conduction implant (BCI for its acronym in English) is placed directly into the bone behind the ear, and, using inductance, receives signals from an external component that has a microphone. A small speaker placed near the implant in the cochlea regenerates the sound picked up by the microphone, allowing the user to listen. The first patient who was implanted last month was fitted with the new device at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital already underway and new clinical trials.

Source:

http://www.chalmers.se/en/news/Pages/New-implant-replaces-impaired-middle-ear.aspx

Neuroprosthetic controlled by thought

A woman, aged 52 and tetraplegic, has managed to control and manage a newly developed robotic hand with her thoughts only, U.S. scientists revealed in the journal The Lancet. Experts explained this advancement required a new form of transmission of nerve impulses that uses the natural control of muscles as a reference.

Jan had lost the ability to move her arms and legs more than 10 years ago due to a degenerative disease called spinocerebellar degeneration, which caused damage to his spinal cord similar to a fracture of the spinal column in a traffic accident. The team from the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (USA), directed by Andrew Schwartz, treated the patient before she was completely quadriplegic, although shortly after putting on the electrodes she could not longer move her arms. 

Scientists implanted her with two microelectrodes in the motor cortex of the brain. These were connected to a robotic arm with an artificial hand and fingers. Two days after the operation the woman could move the arm, from left to right, up and down, only through her thoughts. After 13 weeks of training, she could perform certain actions in order to take things and her movements became faster and more efficient, as scientists revealed.

The prosthetic arm, designed by the John Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory. DARPA and JHU/APL​.

The innovative technique which makes use of the robotic arm is more intuitive for patients, because instead of having to think about where to move the arm, the patient simply has to focus on the goal, as one would do when trying to to score a basket. Although several groups around the world are developing similar prototypes, none has achieved these impressive results. Jan managed to move objects on a table, including cones, blocks and small balls, catching them and changing their location.

"We were impressed by how quickly she was able to acquire his skill. It was totally unexpected," said Andrew Schwartz, professor of neurobiology at the University of Pittsburgh and lead investigator of this project. "At the end of one day, when she was doing these beautiful movements, she was very excited."

To connect the woman to the robotic arm, doctors performed a four-hour operation to implant two tiny electrodes grids of 4 mm on either side of Jan's brain. Each grid has 96 tiny electrodes that protrude 1.5 mm . The electrodes were pushed just below the surface of the brain, near the neurons controlling the hand and arm movement in the motor cortex. Before Jan could use the arm, the doctors had to record her brain activity as she imagined various arm movements. For this, she was asked to look at the robotic arm and try to move it in the same way as she would do with her own arm.

What is yet to come

There are several challenges yet to solve. One is that the robot hand can send sensory impulses to people, so that they can interact with objects according to their texture and temperature.

A second objective is to develop thinner electrodes with a thickness of about five thousandths of a millimeter, to avoid problems like the one Jan has developed after the publication of the study. It is about a scar tissue that forms around the electrodes and that degrades the signals the brain sends to the computer. With smaller electrodes, the body may not trigger any healing process.

Another major focus of future work is to develop a wireless system, so that the patient does not have to be physically connected to the computer that controls the robot arm.

http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2812%2961816-9/abstract