- Science Simplified
- Posts
- A digital bridge lets a paralyzed man walk
A digital bridge lets a paralyzed man walk
A brain-spine interface goes around a spinal cord injury to turn thoughts into action
Neil Baugh
June 07, 2023
TLDR: Brain and spine implants cause a paralyzed man to walk again by creating a digital “bridge” across the injury site.
Brought to you by…
Get plugged into the energy transition
We cover what matters in clean energy and climate tech, business, and policy. Delivered twice per week, for free. Subscribe with 1-click below.
If you’re interested in sponsoring a post reach out to [email protected]
Big Takeaways
Spinal cord injuries disrupt the signals from your brain to spine, reducing muscle control
A brain implant turns a paralyzed patient’s intent to move into an electrical signal
The signal is transmitted to a spinal cord implant that stimulates the neurons responsible for leg muscles
This bridges the gap caused by spinal cord injury to turn the patient’s thoughts into motion, letting the patient walk again
Implantable “bridge” device to relay brain signals to the spine. Credit: H. Lorach and G. Courtine et al. Nature, 2023.
Humans are weak. We hurt easily and don’t heal well. We’re increasingly leaning on our tech skills to overcome our healing deficits. We’ve built neural interfaces to stop tremors from Parkinson’s, turned thoughts into words, and treated other neurological conditions.
Reply