BONGGO, JOHN VINCENT P.

10-21-2019
BSCRIM-2
Could nanotechnology ‘rewire’ an injured spinal cord?
Innovative equipment has been developed to help patients regain control of limbs despite an injury
that stops the transmission of signals through the spinal cord. But what if this transmission could actually
be re-established? An EU-funded project is working on an innovative implant, but there is still a very long
way to go

Related theme(s) and subtheme(s)

Health & life sciences : Medical research | Neuroscience
Information society : Microelectronics and nanotechnology
Innovation
Nanotechnology : Nanomedicine
Research policy : Horizon 2020

The BYAXON project makes no extravagant claims. It is very early days for
the technology it is proposing, and much more research is needed to take the
innovation forward once this four-year undertaking ends in December 2020.

Nonetheless, the project is shaping what might, eventually, turn out to be a

major breakthrough in the treatment of paralysis. The partners are developing
a prototype of an implant designed to restore signal transmission directly in
the spinal cord.
 This possibility does not currently exist, they note, adding that the implant
would serve as an active local bypass. It would bridge the lesion, reconnecting
nerves on either side.

The implant envisaged by BYAXON would enable signals to travel both ways
– in addition to instructions reaching the limbs, sensory information would
once again be returned to the brain. Current neural interfacing technology
does not deliver this feedback, the researchers explain, and typically involves
cables or electrodes – or equipment that is not portable.

BYAXON’s innovative approach to neural interfacing involves the

development of a new generation of sensors and electrodes based on
nanostructured materials. While its research focuses on spinal cord injuries,
the partners observe that the technology could be harnessed for other types
of neural interface.

Examples include retinal implants, brain-recording systems for people with

epilepsy, and deep-brain stimulation devices for the treatment of Parkinson’s
disease. BYAXON is backed by a Horizon 2020’s Future and Emerging
Technologies (FET) programme, through a grant scheme designed to support
the initial stages of research exploring radically new ideas (FET-Open).

Project details

 Project acronym: BYAXON

 Participants: Spain (Coordinator), Italy, France, Germany
 Project N°: 737116
 Total costs: € 3 752 057
 EU contribution: € 3 752 057
 Duration: January 2017 to December 2020