ReEnabled has consistently touted the computer gaming world as the birthplace of technologies which will drastically change the landscape of existence for the profoundly disabled. Yet more credence is given to this idea with the latest release of a mind-controlled computer game, using fairly commonly available parts and software.

Scientists at the Keio University in Japan used a commercially available EEG headband to allow a human to control a character walking around the Second Life virtual world, all through raw brain power. Obviously this technology has tremendous potential for disabled individuals, and may also become a new type of joystick for controlling machinery and video games of the future.

A monkey has learned to operate a robotic arm to feed itself, using only brain power. Researchers are confident that this technology will help paralyzed and disabled people to create a more autonomous lifestyle in the not-too-distant future. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine issued a press release detailing the accomplishment.

PITTSBURGH, May 28 – A monkey has successfully fed itself with fluid, well-controlled movements of a human-like robotic arm by using only signals from its brain, researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine report in the journal Nature. This significant advance could benefit development of prosthetics for people with spinal cord injuries and those with “locked-in” conditions such as Lou Gehrig’s disease, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

“Our immediate goal is to make a prosthetic device for people with total paralysis,” said Andrew Schwartz, Ph.D., senior author and professor of neurobiology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. “Ultimately, our goal is to better understand brain complexity.”

Previously, work has focused on using brain-machine interfaces to control cursor movements displayed on a computer screen. Monkeys in the Schwartz lab have been trained to command cursor movements with the power of their thoughts.

“Now we are beginning to understand how the brain works using brain-machine interface technology,” said Dr. Schwartz. “The more we understand about the brain, the better we’ll be able to treat a wide range of brain disorders, everything from Parkinson’s disease and paralysis to, eventually, Alzheimer’s disease and perhaps even mental illness.”

Using this technology, monkeys in the Schwartz lab are able to move a robotic arm to feed themselves marshmallows and chunks of fruit while their own arms are restrained. Computer software interprets signals picked up by probes the width of a human hair. The probes are inserted into neuronal pathways in the monkey’s motor cortex, a brain region where voluntary movement originates as electrical impulses. The neurons’ collective activity is then evaluated using software programmed with a mathematic algorithm and then sent to the arm, which carries out the actions the monkey intended to perform with its own limb. Movements are fluid and natural, and evidence shows that the monkeys come to regard the robotic device as part of their own bodies.

The primary motor cortex, a part of the brain that controls movement, has thousands of nerve cells, called neurons, which fire together as they contribute to the generation of movement. Because of the massive number of neurons that fire at the same time to control even the simplest of actions, it would be impossible to create probes that capture the firing pattern of each. Pitt researchers developed a special algorithm that uses limited information from about 100 neurons to fill in the missing signals.

“In our research, we’ve demonstrated a higher level of precision, skill and learning,” explained Dr. Schwartz. “The monkey learns by first observing the movement, which activates his brain cells as if he were doing it. It’s a lot like sports training, where trainers have athletes first imagine that they are performing the movements they desire.”

An Action Medical Research funded project, based at the Cambridge University Centre for Brain Repair, is on the brink of a major potential breakthrough in the repair of spinal cord injuries.The charity, which only funds the very best in cutting edge research, has said that the ground-breaking work may bring new hope to sufferers.Spinal cord injuries are a major cause of disability — in the UK there are more than 40,000(1) people suffering from injuries to their spine, which can take the form of anything from loss of sensation to full paralysis.

Cord injury is incredibly distressing for both the patient and their family because there is no cure — active lives can be turned upside down overnight. It is especially tragic because, cruelly, the average age at the time of injury is just 19.

Until now, despite the attempts of many scientists to find a cure, the problem facing neurologists has been that the body simply cannot repair damage to the brain or spinal cord.

Although it is possible for nerves to regenerate, they are blocked by the scar tissue that forms at the site of the spinal injury.

However, Professor James Fawcett’s Cambridge based team believes it is close to a clinical treatment that could allow nerve fibres to regenerate within the spinal cord and also encourage remaining nerve fibres to work more effectively.

This revolutionary discovery may ultimately mean treatments to improve the lives of people paralysed through spinal damage.

The Action Medical Research team has found that a bacterial enzyme called chondroitinase is capable of digesting molecules within scar tissue to allow some nerve fibres to regrow.

Excitingly it also promotes something called nerve plasticity. This means that any remaining undamaged nerve fibres have an increased likelihood of making new connections that could bypass the area of damage.

Recent work by Professor Fawcett’s team has found that using chondroitinase in conjunction with rehabilitation allows greater opportunity for nerve recovery than by using either technique alone. This is an important finding, because it shows that the treatment can open up a window of opportunity during which rehabilitation can be much more effective. The finding will probably also be important for rehabilitation after stroke and brain injury.

This ground-breaking discovery will need to be tested before it can be given to patients, to establish the optimum time for it to be administered.

Professor Fawcett said, “It is rare to find that a spinal cord is completely severed, generally there are still some nerve fibres that are undamaged.

“Chondroitinase offers us hope in two ways; firstly it allows some nerve fibres to regenerate and secondly it enables other nerves to take on the role of those fibres that cannot be repaired.

“Scientists have worked hard to produce treatments for paralysed patients with spinal injuries for many years, but it has proven extremely complicated.

Clinical trials have not yet been started, but the treatment is under pre-clinical development by Acorda Therapeutics, a biotechnology company in New York.

“Along with rehabilitation we are very hopeful that at last we may be able to offer paralysed patients a treatment to improve their condition.”

Dr Yolande Harley of Action Medical Research said, “The charity is proud to be at the forefront of medical advance thanks to brilliant researchers like Professor Fawcett.

“His work will give new hope to people with recent spinal injuries.

“Today the emphasis is on providing the best possible care and occupational therapy but eventually we hope to have a clinical treatment that will help to improve the underlying injury that is causing the patient’s loss of mobility or sensation.

“This is incredibly exciting, ground-breaking work and is truly innovative research from the very best in the field.”

1. The Spinal Injuries Association Annual Report 2003/4 states an estimation of 40,000 UK sufferers

Professor Fawcett’s paper Therapeutic time window for the application of chondroitinase ABC after spinal cord injury has been published online by Experimental Neurology. A copy is available on request.

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