Beyond Boundaries: connecting brain to machine

A Duke University neuroscientist wants to help paralyzed people walk again using a robotic vest that takes commands from the brain.
His name? Miguel Nicolelis, who writes in his new book, Beyond Boundaries, that a “paradigm shift” is underway in science, in which scientists are beginning to think that physical and mental activities aren’t controlled by specialized regions of the brain, but rather groups of “multitasking neurons, distributed across multiple locations.”
But theory becomes practice when Nicolelis dives into brain-machine interfaces. His team has built robotic prostheses that can be controlled via electrical impulses transmitted by neurons in the brain — a major advancement for paralyzed people who don’t have full control of their ability to interact with their environment.
Drive your car just by thinking? Chat with your mother without uttering a word? These are the far-out goals that brain-machine interfaces make a little more possible.
(Perhaps I won’t have to lift a finger to write my next SmartPlanet report.)
Nicolelis appeared on Comedy Central’s Daily Show this week to discuss his research and how it impacts reality. A look: the paralyzed will use thin exoskeletons to move around, Parkinson’s patients will have more options, and manufacturing, communication and space exploration will never be the same.
Host Jon Stewart gets right to it:

We want to make computers that have intelligence. You’re taking the creatures that already have the intelligence and connecting us to machines — cutting out the middle man of creating a machine that would do that.

Here’s the video:

The Daily Show - Miguel Nicolelis
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

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More young people see a surge in strokes

Hospitalizations for ischemic stroke — the most common type — rose 51 percent in boys and men 15 to 34 years old between 1994 and 2007, and 17 percent in girls and women in the same age group, according to a recent study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

By LAURA UNGAR
The (Louisville, Ky.) Courier-Journal

Published: Thursday, March 31, 2011 at 8:47 a.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, March 31, 2011 at 8:47 a.m.

( page of 3 )

SANTA CLAUS, Ind. — Bethany Miller was getting ready to shower at her Indiana home after high school basketball practice in January when her left leg grew weak, then numb. Soon, her entire left side was numb, and she slid to the tile floor.

What is a stroke?

A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain cannot get the blood (and oxygen) it needs, so it starts to die. An ischemic stroke is caused by a clot obstructing the flow of blood, and a hemorrhagic stroke is caused by a blood vessel rupturing and preventing blood flow.
Signs of stroke
— Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
— Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding
— Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
— Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
— Sudden severe headache with no known cause
Ways to avoid stroke
— Check blood pressure and keep it under control.
— Check cholesterol and get high cholesterol under control.
— Stop smoking or don’t start.
— Keep diabetes under control.
— Be particularly vigilant if you’ve had a transient ischemic attack, a “warning stroke” that produces symptoms but no lasting damage.
— Eat well, exercise regularly and maintain normal weight.
— Don’t abuse alcohol or use drugs.
Risk factors particular to women younger than 55
— Migraines:Recent research shows that women who suffer from migraines can be up to 10 times more likely to suffer a stroke.
— Birth-control pills:Women who take even a low-estrogen pill may be twice as likely to have a stroke than those who don’t.
— Hormone replacement therapy:Women who take hormone replacement therapy may have a slightly increased stroke risk.
— Autoimmune diseasessuch as diabetes or lupus
— Clotting disorders:Women who’ve had more than one miscarriage may be at higher risk for blood clots, which can increase their chance of a stroke. Other signs of a possible clotting disorder include a previous history of clots in the legs.
Sources: American Stroke Association and Courier-Journal reporting

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Rushed to Jasper’s Memorial Hospital, doctors gave the high school freshman a startling diagnosis: She’d suffered a stroke.

“I didn’t think a 15-year-old could have one,” Bethany said.

Bethany is part of a disturbing trend — a sharp increase in stroke hospitalizations among Americans younger than 35, including teens.

Hospitalizations for ischemic stroke — the most common type — rose 51 percent in boys and men 15 to 34 years old between 1994 and 2007, and 17 percent in girls and women in the same age group, according to a recent study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

During the same period, hospitalizations because of stroke declined in the elderly.

The findings bolster a study by University of Cincinnati researchers presented last year that showed the percentage of 20- to 45-year-olds having strokes rose from 4.5 percent in 1993-94 to 7.3 percent in 2005.

“We were seeing a rash of younger people coming in having strokes,” said Dr. Brett Kissela, author of that study and Cincinnati neurology chairman.

Risk factors

Researchers aren’t sure why the numbers are increasing, but they suspect that factors such as rising obesity and high blood pressure in the young are big contributors, as well as improved medical technology that is leading to more stroke diagnoses.

Doctors also pointed to other causes in the young — undiagnosed heart problems, smoking, drug use and birth-control pills.

 

Brain Stimulation Might Help Stroke Patients With Swallowing Problems

Small, preliminary study found electrical therapy led to improved function in patients

FRIDAY, March 25 (HealthDay News) -- Electrical stimulation of the brain could help stroke patients avoid potentially dangerous problems with swallowing, preliminary research indicates.
The treatment has only been tested in a small number of patients and needs further exploration. Still, the findings published online March 24 in the journal Stroke are "encouraging," said Dr. Larry B. Goldstein, director of the Duke Stroke Center at Duke University Medical Center.

An estimated 795,000 people suffer a stroke each year in the United States, and most of them survive, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But many lose some of their ability to swallow, a problem known as dysphagia.
"Post-stroke swallowing difficulty is an important problem. Up to half of stroke patients studied have dysfunctional swallowing, and up to a third of these patients aspirate, swallowing material that enters the windpipe rather than going into the stomach," Goldstein explained. "This can cause pneumonia, which can prolong hospitalization, interfere with recovery or increase the chances of dying."
In the new study, researchers mildly stimulated the brains of patients through electrodes placed on the scalp. The idea is to boost activity in certain parts of the brain.
Patients who received the treatment had an easier time swallowing than patients who didn't. Eighty-six percent of patients who received the treatment improved their swallowing by at least two points on a seven-point scale, while only 43 percent of other patients did.
The 14 patients in the study had all suffered strokes between one and seven days earlier, and were being treated at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.
"Further studies are warranted to refine this promising intervention by exploring effects of stimulation parameters, frequency of stimulation, and timing of the intervention in improving swallowing functions," the researchers wrote.
More information
For more about dysphagia, visit the U.S. National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
more read.....

Brain can compensate loss of new cells

2011-03-20 14:20:00

Regenerative Med Forum Ads by Google Annual Forum, 2011 Washington, DC Registration as low as $395 regenerativemedicinefoundation.org

Washington, March 20 (IANS) The brain is an amazingly adaptable organ that can restore critical functions linked with learning and memory even if its ability to make new cells is curtailed, researchers say. These findings bring scientists a step closer to isolating the mechanisms by which the brain compensates for disruptions and reroutes neural (nerve cell) functioning which could open the way to treating cognitive impairments in humans. 'It's amazing how the brain is capable of reorganizing itself in this manner,' says Geoffrey Murphy, study co-author at the University of Michigan Molecular and Behavioural Neuroscience Institute, reports the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 'Right now, we're still figuring out exactly how the brain accomplishes all this at the molecular level, but it's sort of comforting to know that our brains are keeping track of all of this for us,' adds Murphy, according to a Michigan statement. In previous research, scientists found that restricting cell division in a vital component of the brain in mice curtailed cellular mechanism linked with memory formation.more read...

Breakthrough in delivering drugs to the brain

By James Gallagher Health reporter, BBC News

Getting drugs to brain cells has hampered medical advances

Continue reading the main story

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A new way of delivering drugs to the brain has been developed by scientists at the University of Oxford.

They used the body's own transporters - exosomes - to deliver drugs in an experiment on mice.
The authors say the study, in Nature Biotechnology, could be vital for treating diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Muscular Dystrophy.
The Alzheimer's Society said the study was "exciting" and could lead to more effective treatments.
Research barrier One of the medical challenges with diseases of the brain is getting any treatment to cross the blood-brain barrier.
The barrier exists to protect the brain, preventing bacteria from crossing over from the blood, while letting oxygen through.
However, this has also produced problems for medicine, as drugs can also be blocked.

more read....

Brave teen stands up for all those who struggle to speak but have so much to say

Mar 6 2011 Maggie Barry, Sunday Mail

connor stewart Image 2

FRUSTRATION echoes in Connor Stewart's voice.
Because every word is a struggle for the 17-year-old, who is sharp and extremely bright.
A bone marrow transplant to save him from childhood leukaemia resulted in a brain injury which means he must fight to get his words out.
But Connor knows he is not alone and that even his limited skills make him luckier than some who cannot speak at all.
Which is why he has become an ambassador for the Talk for Scotland campaign, representing thousands who cannot communicate properly.
He said: "Being unable to communicate can make you feel very isolated but when I went to Civic Participation Network meetings, I found people with similar problems."
Some of them had suffered throat cancer, strokes or brain haemorrhages. Others had MS, Parkinson's or Aphasia. But they all had one thing in common - they found it difficult to express what they wanted to say.
Connor, from Bathgate, West Lothian, said: "Since working with these people, I have become more determine.... Read More...

Imaging Study Probes Consciousness in Brain-Injured Patients

New research uses imaging technology to assess higher-level cognitive functioning in severely brain-injured patients. The study provides a window into consciousness — but the view it presents is one that is blurred in fascinating ways, say researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College.
In a novel study of six patients ranging in their function from minimally conscious state to the locked-in syndrome (normal cognitive function with severe motor impairment), the researchers looked at how the brains of these patients respond to a set of commands and questions while being scanned with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).Read more...