Research grant aimed at less invasive study of brain signals

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Doctors who diagnose and treat people with chronic neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy could have a safer, more convenient and less invasive way to monitor patients’ brain waves, thanks to new research lead by Ohio State University.

The researchers, funded by a four-year, $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation, aim to develop technology that wirelessly collects and records brain waves, according to John Volakis, professor of electrical and computer engineering and Director of the ElectroScience Laboratory at The Ohio State University.

Volakis is leading a multi-disciplinary Ohio State team of researchers in collaboration with Arizona State University. The team’s plan is to develop passive, biocompatible sensors – conceptually similar to those implanted into pets for identification purposes – along with an unobtrusive, wearable system that receives, records and transmits brain wave information to health care providers.

The research could improve the diagnosis, monitoring and treatment of patients with Alzheimer’s diseases, seizures, brain injuries and any number of other neurologic issues. The results might even be applied to help patients control prosthetic devices.

“Overcoming the challenges in safety and long-term reliability presented by conventional neurosensor technology could transform health care for people suffering from severe chronic neurological disorders,” Volakis said.

Reading brainwaves is nothing new. However, it currently involves invasive, inconvenient and potentially dangerous surgical procedures. The associated technologies involve wires that directly connect to implanted sensors that are much larger than the one proposed by Volakis and his team. This requires the patients to be immobilized. It also hinders doctors’ ability to monitor patients in real time during their typical daily lives.

Volakis and his team envision a better approach.

“We know the signals exist,” Volakis said. “We just can’t read them right now without having patients wired to external monitors. The key is to be wireless and less invasive.”

The proposed system could allow patients to go about their normal daily activities, not even knowing the sensors are operating.

The implanted wireless neurosensory device will be less than two centimeters long. It will be placed on a patient’s dura mater, a strong membrane covering the brain.  The biocompatible sensor is similar to the kinds of radio frequency identification devices (RFIDs) used for a variety of purposes, ranging from identifying lost pets to consumer product inventory control.

The neurosensor will be fully passive, meaning it has no battery or other energy source that could create potentially dangerous heat inside a patient’s brain. That will reduce the chance for brain injury and trauma. It will also remove the need for attached wires. All of this implies a much less invasive surgical procedure than any existing approach.

Data from the neurosensors will be remotely collected by a wearable “body area network.” The BAN will involve clothing – a hat and shirt, for example – that safely stimulates the brain sensor and wirelessly extracts the collected data. The external devices in the clothing will be made of unobtrusive textile antennas, a tiny WiFi chip, and an RF power harvester.

The textile antenna is thin and pliable enough to be used like a thread. It is sewn into the fabric of a patient’s clothing. The RF harvester captures ambient radio frequency energy from its surroundings and converts it into the small amount of direct current electricity to power the body area network. Data about the patient’s brain waves are then transmitted by the WiFi chip to health care providers, perhaps via a smart phone or laptop. The entire system would weigh less than a few ounces.

Part of the challenge lies in the strength of the signal that can be received from inside the skull. Volakis said the researchers will need to find a way to increase that signal strength by 30 times or so. Another challenge will be in interpreting the brain waves, which may be different from person to person, Volakis said.

The research will be performed by a multidisciplinary team from Ohio State and Arizona State University. Volakis will focus on the wireless communication and power harvesting. Research into the behavioral, psychological and health impact of acquired data will be performed by Julian F. Thayer, professor of psychology at The Ohio State University. The design and implementation of the neurosensor will be performed by Junseok Chae, Arizona State University associate professor of electrical and computer engineering.

“With this research, we envision a huge new world in the study of brain signals,” Volakis said.