Mapping the brain-spinal cord interaction towards understanding and treatment of movement disorders

Introduction

Movement is one of the most important activities in our everyday life. It is an essential element for maintaining overall health and well-being, with more than 1 billion people globally suffering from a neurological disease that directly affects their movement. Each year, more than 1.5 million people experience a stroke in the EU alone, leading to death, paralysis, or some kind of disability. This is a significant burden on healthcare systems with no cure.

Research Questions

We must address the questions:

• How do we move?
• What is the underlying physical mechanism of the brain-spinal cord interaction that orchestrates the generation of movement?

To be able to answer those, a high-performance bi-directional interface is required.

Project Overview

Move2Treat explores disruptive science by developing a new brain-spinal cord interface to investigate the associated neuronal circuits. In fact, Move2Treat has 3 distinct breakthroughs:

1. A novel theory on movement generation by rotating ensembles validating the neuronal population activity across central brain regions and the spinal cord.
2. A bi-directional soft-fiber platform as a neural interface to the brain and spinal cord in freely behaving species.
3. Validation of theory (1) and neural interface (2) in the disease models.

Technological Advancements

The developed theory and implant enable the “next-generation pacemaker of the nervous system” based on the first complete, minimally invasive, wireless, biocompatible, and soft multifunctional fiber-based neural interface. This interface maps the brain-spinal cord activity by simultaneous stimulation/recording in vivo and real-time with high spatial and temporal resolution.

Conclusion

Move2Treat is a European approach to establish technological sovereignty, delivering the “next-generation precision sensing for neurological science.”