This Neural Implant Allows Scientists To Manipulate Human Brain Cells With A Smartphone

Scientists have just had a breakthrough in manipulating brain cells with a brain implant and smartphones. The team behind this invention is from the US and Korea. What they made is a soft neural implant that can deliver colored lights and many types of drugs directly to human brain cells. What the scientist hope for it is that the implant can be used to treat Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, pain, addiction, and depression.

This implantable device has the ability to control neural circuits, and a human operator can manage it by using a smartphone and Bluetooth Low Energy. The device feature drug cartridge that can be replaced, just like Lego, and can target specific neurons with drugs and lights in an extended period of time. With this new neural implant, scientists now can have optical neuromodulation and chronic chemical that were unachievable with other systems.

With other methods, if scientists want to deliver light therapy and drugs to the brain, they will have to use optical fibers and metal tubes. While these systems do their job well, they limit the movement of the patient and over time, will lead to lesions. The new neural implant is the answer to the problems of these older systems. It does not require complex controls and bulky equipment at all.

Another application of this device is that it may allow scientists to study the same brain circuits for a long time without worrying that the drug may one day runs out, thanks to the replaceable canisters. In their experiments, the team test on mice with an ultrathin and soft probe, with the thickness of human hair.

The tiny LEDs that are even smaller than a grain of salt, coupled with microfluidic channels, enable limitless delivery of drug and light. The team is confident that this invention will provide a new way of treating pain, addiction, or even emotional disorders.