BrainGate is a

brain implant Brain implants, often referred to as neural implants, are technological devices that connect directly to a biological subject's brain – usually placed on the surface of the brain, or attached to the brain's cortex. A common purpose of modern bra ...

system, currently under development and in clinical trials, designed to help those who have lost control of their limbs, or other bodily functions, such as patients with

amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or—in the United States—Lou Gehrig's disease (LGD), is a rare, Terminal illness, terminal neurodegenerative disease, neurodegenerative disorder that results i ...

(ALS) or

spinal cord injury A spinal cord injury (SCI) is damage to the spinal cord that causes temporary or permanent changes in its function. It is a destructive neurological and pathological state that causes major motor, sensory and autonomic dysfunctions. Symptoms of ...

. The Braingate technology and related Cyberkinetic’s assets are now owned by privately held Braingate, Co. The sensor, which is implanted into the

brain The brain is an organ (biology), organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It consists of nervous tissue and is typically located in the head (cephalization), usually near organs for ...

, monitors brain activity in the patient and converts the intention of the user into computer commands.

Technology

In its current form, BrainGate consists of a sensor implanted in the brain and an external decoder device, which connects to some kind of

prosthetic In medicine, a prosthesis (: prostheses; from ), or a prosthetic implant, is an artificial device that replaces a missing body part, which may be lost through physical trauma, disease, or a condition present at birth (Congenital, congenital disord ...

or other external object. The sensor is in the form of a

microelectrode array Microelectrode arrays (MEAs) (also referred to as multielectrode arrays) are devices that contain multiple (tens to thousands) microelectrodes through which neural signals are obtained or delivered, essentially serving as neural interfaces that c ...

, formerly known as the Utah Array, which consists of 100 hair-thin

electrodes An electrode is an electrical conductor used to make contact with a nonmetallic part of a circuit (e.g. a semiconductor, an electrolyte, a vacuum or a gas). In electrochemical cells, electrodes are essential parts that can consist of a variety ...

that sense the electromagnetic signature of

neurons A neuron (American English), neurone (British English), or nerve cell, is an membrane potential#Cell excitability, excitable cell (biology), cell that fires electric signals called action potentials across a neural network (biology), neural net ...

firing in specific areas of the brain, for example, the area that controls arm movement. The sensor translates that activity into electrically charged signals, which are then sent to an external device and decoded in software. The decoder connects to and can use the brain signals to control an external device, such as a robotic arm, a computer cursor, or even a wheelchair. In essence, BrainGate allows a person to manipulate objects in the world using only the mind. In addition to real-time analysis of neuron patterns to relay movement, the BrainGate array is also capable of recording electrical data for later analysis. A potential use of this feature would be for a

neurologist Neurology (from , "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the nervous system, which comprises the brain, the ...

to study seizure patterns in a patient with

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of Non-communicable disease, non-communicable Neurological disorder, neurological disorders characterized by a tendency for recurrent, unprovoked Seizure, seizures. A seizure is a sudden burst of abnormal electrical activit ...

History

BrainGate was originally developed by researchers in the Department of Neuroscience at

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

in conjunction with bio-tech company Cyberkinetics, Inc. Cyberkinetics later spun off the device manufacturing to Blackrock Microsystems, who now manufactures the sensors and the data acquisition hardware. The BrainGate Company purchased the intellectual property and related technology from Cyberkinetics and continues to own the intellectual property related to BrainGate.

Research and experimental results

The first reported experiments involving the implantation of the microelectrode array in one human subject were carried out in 2002 by Kevin Warwick, Mark Gasson and Peter Kyberd. The procedure, which was performed at the

Radcliffe Infirmary The Radcliffe Infirmary was a hospital in central north Oxford, England, located at the southern end of Woodstock Road on the western side, backing onto Walton Street. Closed in 2007, after refurbishment the building was re-opened in October ...

, involved the implantation of the array in the peripheral nerves of the subject in order to successfully bring about both motor and sensory functionality, i.e. bi-directional signalling. The subsequent full clinical trial of BrainGate was led by researchers at

Massachusetts General Hospital Massachusetts General Hospital (Mass General or MGH) is a teaching hospital located in the West End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. It is the original and largest clinical education and research facility of Harvard Medical School/Harvar ...

, Brown University, and the

United States Department of Veterans Affairs The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing lifelong healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers an ...

and ran from 2004 to 2006, involving the study of four patients with

tetraplegia Tetraplegia, also known as quadriplegia, is defined as the dysfunction or loss of motor and/or sensory function in the cervical area of the spinal cord. A loss of motor function can present as either weakness or paralysis leading to partial ...

. The results, published in a 2006 article in the journal ''

Nature Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the Ecosphere (planetary), ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the Scientific law, laws, elements and phenomenon, phenomena of the physic ...

'', showed that a human with tetraplegia was able to control a cursor on a computer screen just by thinking, enabling him to open emails, and to operate devices such as a television. One participant, Matt Nagle, had a spinal cord injury, while another had advanced

ALS Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or—in the United States—Lou Gehrig's disease (LGD), is a rare, terminal neurodegenerative disorder that results in the progressive loss of both upper and low ...

. In July 2009, a second clinical trial, dubbed "BrainGate2", was initiated by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital, Brown University, and the Providence VA. In November 2011, researchers from the

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

Neural Prosthetics Translational Laboratory joined the trial as a second site. This trial is ongoing. In May 2012, BrainGate researchers published a study in ''Nature'' demonstrating that two people paralyzed by brainstem stroke several years earlier were able to control robotic arms for reaching and grasping. One participant, Cathy Hutchinson, was able to use the arm to drink coffee from a bottle, the first time she was able to drink unaided in 15 years. This took place on site at The Boston Home in

Dorchester, Massachusetts Dorchester () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood comprising more than in the city of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Originally, Dorchester was a separate town, founded by Puritans who emigrated in 1630 from Dorchester, Dorset, E ...

, a specialized residence where Ms. Hutchinson resided. The study included researchers at Brown University, the Department of Veterans Affairs, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and the German Aerospace Center.

Current clinical trials

Clinical trials began in 2009 under the name "BrainGate2 Neural Interface System". , Stanford University, Massachusetts General Hospital, Case Western Reserve University (Ohio) and Providence VA Medical Center were actively recruiting participants for the ongoing BrainGate2 clinical trial. In April 2021, BrainGate became the first technology to transmit wireless commands from a human brain to a computer. The clinical study used two participants with spinal cord injuries. The study used a transmitter connected to the subject's brain motor cortex to transmit the signals. The accuracy and speed of typing and movement was reported to be identical to that of wired solutions.

References

External links