It is unknown if we will live to see the creation of cyborgs, but our children are likely to be. Scientists knowingly create more and more detailed brain map, it's time to find it more than a diagnostic application.
There is already nanoelectronics that looks, moves and works like real neurons. Tucked away in the brain, experts say such implants will provide the best treatment for Alzheimer's disease, PTSD, or even improve cognitive performance.
In an article published in the journal Nature Biotechnology, Sean Patel, a professor at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, and Charles Lieber, a professor at Joshua University, and Beth Friedman, argue that neurotechnology is on the cusp of a major breakthrough. Scientists have long combined disciplines to solve problems that go beyond a single field. And now the fruits are ripe.
“The closest frontier is the fusion of human knowledge with machines,” says Patel.
Controlling electrical activity in the brain itself is nothing new. So, for decades, doctors have been using electrodes implanted in the brain to relieve tremors in patients with Parkinson's disease.
During implantation, Parkinson's patients are awake, so surgeons can calibrate the electrical impulses. "You can watch the person regain control over their limbs without leaving the place," Patel admires, "It amazes me."
But modern sensors are limited due to their size and inflexibility. “The brain is soft and the implants are hard,” Patel continues. “Plus, each electrode looks like a pencil. He is big.
Large electrodes sometimes act, if not like an elephant in a china shop, then like a bear, definitely. They stimulate more areas than intended, sometimes causing serious side effects such as speech impairment.
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In addition, over time, the brain's immune system perceives rigid implants as foreign objects: the glial cells of the brain absorb a potential invader, while displacing or even killing native neurons and reducing the device's ability to support treatment.
But about four years ago, when Sean Patel first discovered Charles M. Lieber's ultra-flexible alternatives and realized, "This is the future of brain-machine interfaces!"
Lieber's mesh electronics are sized to match brain neurons and have almost no immune response due to their cellular and subcellular characteristics and the flexural stiffness of the brain.
In close long-term proximity with living neurons, such implants are able to collect very accurate information about neural interactions during health and illness, building a communication map of the brain at the cellular level.
Mesh electronics can be customized to treat any neurological disorder. Scientists have already demonstrated how such implants guide neonatal neurons to areas damaged by a stroke.
"The potential is absolutely outstanding," says Patel, "I see prospects at the level of what once started with the transistor or telecommunications."
Adaptive electrodes can provide incredibly precise control over prostheses or even paralyzed limbs. They will be able to act as neural substitutes, repairing damaged neural circuits using neurofeedback.