Rewiring the Nervous System, Without Wires

• Published in: Future Trends in Microelectronics pp. 259 - 274
• Main Author: Borton, D. A
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken, NJ, USA Wiley 2016; John Wiley & Sons, Inc
• Edition: 1
• Subjects: closed‐loop sensorimotor prosthetic system; epidural electrical stimulation; nervous system; neuromotor disease; upper limb processing pathways; wireless neurotechnology; Wireless communication; Wireless sensor networks; Spinal cord; Microelectronics; Process control
• ISBN: 1119069114; 9781119069119
• DOI: 10.1002/9781119069225.ch3-2

In the healthy nervous system, the development of intention and motor execution is a dynamic and highly distributed process that originates in the brain. Nervous system disorders have long‐term health, economic, and social consequences. This chapter discusses the potential impact that advances in wireless neurotechnology may provide persons with neuromotor disease and insult, but also to explores fundamental basic research avenues enabled by leveraging wireless telemetry in human and nonhuman brain science. Considerable investment and decades of intensive research have brought great insight into how movement and proprioception or sensation are accomplished in upper limb processing pathways. This wireless technology enabled acquisition of full spectrum neuronal population dynamics in untethered freely moving monkeys. Neurotechnology and stimulation protocols are at the early stages of development. Further, by combining epidural electrical stimulation (EES) with cortical stimulation of the sensory areas, one envisions a true internally closed‐loop sensorimotor prosthetic system.