Multielectrode recording in spinal cord during locomotion and rehabilitation afte

描述(申请人提供)：我们的目标是从大鼠脊髓横断下获得稳定的多电极记录，并跟踪脊髓损伤后和康复过程中发生的神经变化。为此，我们将使用多电极神经记录和微刺激。这些数据将是独特和新颖的，对我们理解脊髓损伤以及可能将技术转移到临床应用具有重大潜在影响。我们将使用并进一步开发我们实验室提出的新型电极设计，以实现我们的目标。具体目标1：我们将进一步开发一种慢性椎管内多电极探头，使用新型编织复合电极，沿其长度记录位置。我们将添加沿插入的探针长度分布的记录位置，以便对椎板上的神经活动进行采样。为了做到这一点，我们将在现有建筑中增加激光消融技术。我们还计划将元件导线直径减小2-3倍(从目前的13微米导线加上绝缘元件)，将导线和探头的合规性提高到当前值的16到81倍。具体目标2：我们将使用我们的电极记录T9/10脊髓化(ST)大鼠(包括新生和成年ST大鼠损伤)在机器人辅助康复过程中脊髓的活动模式。我们假设，脊髓损伤后的机器人康复会在治疗期间引起神经活动的动态变化，这种变化每天都会持续，并与改善功能恢复和体重支持相关。这些实验将为脊柱水平的康复过程提供全新的数据和见解，并为评估康复和神经可塑性提供新的措施。具体目标3：我们将在T9/10脊髓损伤大鼠(包括新生和成年ST大鼠损伤)中进行椎管内微刺激测试，无论是在整个过程中，还是在机器人辅助康复之后。我们的假设是，训练早期和后期组之间的微刺激差异将与功能恢复和机器人训练效果相关。这些新的刺激数据也有望提供一套新的结果衡量标准和电路测试工具，用于评估局部脊髓刺激、康复和神经可塑性之间的相互作用。这个项目有可能对我们理解脊髓功能、损伤和使用标准动物模型的康复过程产生巨大的、可能是变革性的影响。此外，目标1中正在调整的技术可能在许多大脑区域的神经记录和刺激方面具有广泛的适用性，从而使新一代神经记录工具和神经假体成为可能。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Our goal is to obtain stable multielectrode recordings from spinal cord below a spinal transection in rats and follow the neural changes that occur after spinal cord injury and as a result of rehabilitation processes. To do this we will use multielectrode neural recordings and microstimulation. The data will be unique and novel with major potential impacts on our understanding of spinal cord injury, and possible technology transfer to clinical applications. We will use and further develop novel electrode designs initiated in our laboratory to achieve our objectives. Specific Aim 1 : We will further develop a chronic intraspinal multielectrode probe with recording sites along its length, using novel braided composite electrodes. We will add recording sites distributed along the inserted probe length in order to sample neural activity across laminae. To do this we will add laser ablation techniques to our existing construction. We also plan to reduce component wire diameter by a factor of 2-3 (from current 13 micron wire plus insulation components), increasing wire and probe compliance by a factor of 16 to 81 times beyond current values. Specific Aim 2: We will use our electrodes to record activity patterns in spinal cord throughout the process of robot assisted rehabilitation in T9/10 spinalized (ST) rats (both neonatal and adult ST rat injuries). We hypothesize that robot rehabilitation after SCI causes within session dynamic alterations in neural activity, which persist day to day, and correlate with improving functional recovery and weight support. These experiments will provide completely novel data and insights into the rehabilitation process at spinal levels and new measures for assessing rehabilitation and neuroplasticity. Specific Aim 3: We will perform intraspinal microstimulation tests in T9/10 spinalized rats (both neonatal and adult ST rat injuries), either throughout, or after, robot assisted rehabilitation. Our hypothesis is that differences in microstimulation between the groups early and late in training will correlate to functional recovery and robot training effects. These new stimulation data are also expected to provide a set of novel outcome measures and circuit test tools for assessing the interaction of focal spinal stimulation, rehabilitation and neuroplasticity. This project has the potential to have enormous and possibly transformative impacts on our understanding of spinal cord function, injury, and rehabilitation processes using standard animal models. Further, the technologies being tuned in Aim 1 may have broad applicability in neural recording and stimulation in many brain areas, and thus enable new generations of neural recording tools and neuroprosthetics.