Flexible Polymer Electrodes for Stable Prosthetic Visual Perception in Mice
Journal article, 2024
Brain interfaces that can stimulate neurons, cause minimal damage, and work for a long time will be central for future neuroprosthetics. Here, the long-term performance of highly flexible, thin polyimide shanks with several small (<15 µm) electrodes during electrical microstimulation of the visual cortex, is reported. The electrodes exhibit a remarkable stability when several billions of electrical pulses are applied in vitro. When the devices are implanted in the primary visual cortex (area V1) of mice and the animals are trained to detect electrical microstimulation, it is found that the perceptual thresholds are 2–20 microamperes (µA), which is far below the maximal currents that the electrodes can withstand. The long-term functionality of the devices in vivo is excellent, with stable performance for up to more than a year and little damage to the brain tissue. These results demonstrate the potential of thin floating electrodes for the long-term restoration of lost sensory functions.
vision
bioengineering
visual prosthesis
cortical implant
microelectrodes
Author
Corinne Orlemann
Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience NIN - KNAW
Christian Boehler
University of Freiburg
Roxana N. Kooijmans
Forschungszentrum Jülich
Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience NIN - KNAW
Bingshuo Li
Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience NIN - KNAW
Maria Asplund
Chalmers, Microtechnology and Nanoscience (MC2), Electronics Material and Systems
University of Freiburg
Pieter R. Roelfsema
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
University of Amsterdam
Pierre and Marie Curie University (UPMC)
Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience NIN - KNAW
Advanced healthcare materials
2192-2640 (ISSN) 2192-2659 (eISSN)
Vol. 13 15 2304169Subject Categories
Neurosciences
DOI
10.1002/adhm.202304169
PubMed
38324245