Closed-loop systems, or brain–machine-brain interfaces, have not been widely developed for brain repair. In this study, Guggenmos and colleagues targeted spared motor and somatosensory regions of the rat brain after traumatic brain injury (TBI) for establishment of a functional bridge using a battery-powered microdevice. Their results show that by using discriminated action potentials as a trigger for stimulating a distant cortical location, rapid recovery of fine motor skills is facilitated. Within one week, while receiving spike-triggered stimulation, rats showed substantially improved reaching and grasping functions that were indistinguishable from prelesion levels by two weeks. This method has potential as a technique for bridging damaged neural pathways functionally and promoting recovery after brain injury. The authors suggest that this approach will also be applicable to other types of acquired brain injuries.
Guggenmos DJ, Azin M, Barbay S, Mahnken JD, Dunham C, Mohseni P and Nudo RJ: Restoration of function after brain damage using a neural prosthesis. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA December 9, 2013
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/12/03/1316885110.abstract
