NEUROSURGICAL FOCUS Neurocurg Focus 40 (140, 2000 Investigation of stereotactic surgery for avian brain stimulation by a fully implanted wireless system *Changhoon Baek, PhD,’ Sunhyo Kim, DVM,? Jung-Woo Jang, BS,” Younginha Jung, BS, Gwang Jin Choi, PhD,' Shinyong Shim, PhD,’ Seunghyeon Yun, PhD,’ Kangmoon Seo, DVM, PhD,? ‘Yoon-Kyu Song, PhD,’ Sung June Kim, PhD; and Jong-Mo Seo, MD, PhO" Departments of Eectcal end Computer Engineering end Veterinary Cncl Sclences, Seoul National Univers, Secu and *Deparient of Nano Scence end Technology, Seu National Livers, Siwon, South Korea OBJECTIVE The authors’ goal was to study avian motor brain mapping va wireless stimulation to induce certain bo haviors. In this paper, the authors propose an electrode design thal is suitable for avian brain simulation as well as a slereotactic implant procedure for the proposed electrode. METHODS An appropriate breed for avian brain study was chosen. A fully implantable remote-controlled electrical slimulation system was inserted fo minimize discomfort. A suitable electrode design and stereotactic surgery method based on the electrode design were investiga. RESULTS Using a wireless stimulation system, lapping and rotation behaviors were induced by stimulating the ventral part ofthe nucleus infercolicularis and formato reticularis medialis mesencephali both onthe ground and during fight CONCLUSIONS The authors were able to implant the enlire brain stimulation system inside the avian body without any ‘surgical complications, Posloperative observations suggested thatthe bird did nol ind the implant uncomfortable. hips then orgdabs!10.3171/20204 FOCUS7025 KEYWORDS stereotactic surgery, brain mapping. deep brain stimulation, depth electrodes, electrical stimulation +E brain manages the cognitive, sensory, and motor functions of an animal, and understanding the brain can allow access to an endless number of applica tions for the brain-machine interface, rehabilitation, and healthcare. The brain has been a topic of interest for de- ‘cades, and both clinical and preclinical studies are actively being conducted ‘There are many studies related to the motor functions bf animal brains, The most common animals for this type bf study have been rodents‘ and cockroaches;* and their behaviors on the ground have been investigated. However, ‘animals capable of flying have not been studied in depth. Since flight adds a new dimension to the path of motion, a hhew study based on a different approach is needed. Dur- ing the present study, we empirically found that, unlike ‘rodents, pigeons are difficult to train using positive and/or hegative feedback. Therefore, a new approach was needed fo find stimulation sites that are linked more directly to ‘each behavioral reaction If birds can be guided to follow a certain flight path, they could aid humans in observing scenes of disaster from the sky. For example, fast localization and identifi- cation of survivors are erucial in aviation accidents in a mountainous area under bad weather. In such situations, neuromodalated birds with wireless monitoring devices such as infrared cameras could be deployed instead of helicopters or drones. By using multiple neuromodulated birds, a wide area could be searched simultaneously, re- sulting in faster initial identification and localization of the disaster site and survivors. However, studies related to birds are rare compared to those for rodents; therefore, the surgieal process and elec- trode design needed to be optimized for birds for safe im- plantation. Our final goal was to study avian motor brain mapping via wireless stimulation to induce certain behav- iors. Inthis paper, we investigated the stereotactic surgical implantation of neural electrodes in birds and an electrode design that would be safe and suitable for avian brain stim- [ABBREVIATIONS ANS = avian neural simulator, FEC fel fat cable: LCP = Squid ysl polymer. SUBMITTED Janus 14,2020. ACCEPTED Ap 1, 2020 INCLUDE WHEN CITING Dd 10471720204 FOCUS2O26, * GB, and SK. cerbuted equaly ft project. [@AANS 2020, except where protiited by US coprigh iw Neurosurg Focus Volune 49+ Juy 2020) 4 UUnauthenticated | Oownleaded 62/68/24 08:49 PM UTC:Beck et ulation in the hope that it could be a useful guide for future avian neuromodulation studies. Methods ‘The animal experiment procedures were reviewed and approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Com- mittees of Seoul National University. Bird Selection Parrot, mandarin duck, pigeon, and yellow parrot were selected as potential candidates for this study. The birds, were euthanized, and their brains were harvested and fixed with 4% paraformaldehyde. Finally, the brains were placed in 30% sucrose in preparation for further evalua. tion, including histological evaluation ‘The size of the brains, from largest to smallest, was that of the parrot, mandarin duek, pigeon, and yellow parrot. However, considering the ratio of visual cortex and cer ebellum compared to the size of the whole brain, with the assumption that the size of the brain territory is propor. tional to its activity, pigeons were determined to be the ‘most suitable candidate for this study. The pigeons used (n = 48 total) in this study were Columba livia 2-6 years of age and weighing 400-600 g, the same category of birds used in the brain atlas ? Surgical Preparation The implant surgery began with general anesthesia Anesthesia through intramuscular injection of ketamine or xylazine was found to be inappropriate for the birds in maintaining appropriate respiration during surgery. ‘Therefore, anesthesia was achieved through inhalation using isoflurane (Liran, Hana Pharm Co: Fig. 1). An 8-Fr polyvinyl chloride’ (PVC) gastric feeding tube GF- CO8040PU, Japan Medical Supply) was cut to be used as, an endotracheal tube, and capnography was connected to the ventilating eireuit to constantly monitor the CO; level, for estimating the depth of anesthesia, Finally, it has been reported that birds are less efficient in keeping a core tem: perature while under anesthesia‘ therefore, warm water FIG. 4, Intubation for inhalaton anesthesia, 2 | Neurosurg Focus Volune 49 ly 2020 blanket and warm air (Bair Hugger warming unit, model 505, 3M) devices were used to keep the surroundings at 43°C to avoid hypothermia, Implant System Overall System ‘There have been acute experiments on controlling the movement of birds using brain stimulation.” However, our ‘goal was to implant the entire system internally and con- ‘rol the internal circuits using wireless communication for long-term stimulation. This would allow more comfort able movement for the bird and less pain after surgery. The ‘overall system consists of two parts: the electrodes and the stimulator. The electrodes are interfaces that stimulate the target neurons, Since the targets were located deep within the brain, depth probe-type electrodes were fabricated us- ing liquid erystal polymer (LCP; Kuraray Co,)? Depth Probe Electrode Initially, stimulation targets of the brain were searched by using a Teflon-coated stainless steel wire (grade 316 [SUS316], diameter 0.203 mm, Nilaco Co) array? which hhad connection pins exposed for wired stimulation (Fig. 2). The exposed pins caused the birds discomfort and therefore had to be addressed. The surgical procedure for implanting this electrode array is deseribed below in Wired Electrode Implant. The electrode had to be revised to address the aforementioned problems, and the details of the final depth probe electrode design are described below in Customized Electrode Design. ‘Avian Neural Stimulator ‘The depth probe electrodes were controlled by a stim- ulator module, which we refer to as the “avian neural stinmlator” (ANS). The ANS was encased in LCP and consists of a stinmulator chip, a rechargeable battery. a coil for wireless charging, and an antenna for wireless com- munication. The detailed specifications and fabrication of the ANS have been reported elswhere:!® The ANS was ap- proximately 3 x 3 x 0.5 em, so it was most advantageots to place it Behind the nuchal area where there is sufficient space, it does not hinder wing movement, and itis close to the electrodes. Wired Electrode Implant The bind was fixed to the stereotactic instrument (Pi- geon Adaptor, model 918, and Small Animal Stereotaxic Instrument, model 900LS, both David Kopf Instruments) following the orientation given in the atlas? and anesthe- tized as described in Surgical Preparation. The ear bars of the stereotactic instrument were inserted into the ex- ternal auditory canals, holding the head in position. Then, the beak was angled approximately 45° and held in posi- tion using the 45° metal bar of the stereotactic instrument, Feathers on the scalp and nuchal region were removed ‘manually, and a sagittal incision was made on the scalp. A 23-gauge needle was fixed to the stereotactic instrument to pinpoint the reference coordinates. The reference of the xcaxis was the center of the ear bar, and the reference of the y-axis was the center of the skull. After ealeulating the UUnauthenticated | Oownleaded 62/68/24 08:49 PM UTC: