Investigating Neuroplasticity Associated with Brain Machine Interfaces and Spinal Cord Injury
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
1:00 PM-3:00 PM
BIOMED PhD Research Proposal
Title:
Investigating Neuroplasticity Associated with Brain Machine Interfaces and Spinal Cord Injury
Speaker:
Nathaniel Bridges, PhD Candidate, School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems
Advisor:
Karen Moxon, PhD, Professor and Associate Director for Research, School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems
Abstract:
Restoring mobility in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) using brain machine interface (BMI) -driven neuroprosthetics is becoming more of a reality. In these systems, brain activity is used to determine the subject’s intention, which is then used to control a robotic device. Training in a BMI induces neuroplasticity but SCI and therapies that improve function after SCI also induce neuroplasticity. However, there is limited understanding of how these different sources of neuroplasticity interact. This lack of understanding inhibits the ability to develop decoders and BMI training paradigms that are optimized for the most promising clinical SCI outcomes.
The objective of this thesis is to understand the impact of these different sources of neuroplasticity on BMI performance and, therefore, improve clinically applicable BMIs. The central hypothesis is that SCI and therapy after SCI will further modulate neuroplasticity by changing single neuron activity compared to BMI-use in intact animals alone. To meet this objective a novel BMI task was developed and the impact of BMI training, SCI and therapy after SCI on neuronal activity will be studied. Preliminary results suggest that, in intact animals, BMI performance increases with training and neuroplasticity is widespread, extending beyond the region of the brain used by the BMI. I expect these results to not only aid in the development of improved BMIs for patients with SCI but to also provide insight into cellular mechanisms of neuroplasticity in the brain.
Contact Information
Ken Barbee
215-895-1335
barbee@drexel.edu