Large-Scale Patterned Electrical Stimulation for Design of Retinal Prostheses

项目总结/摘要 我们的工作目标是推进高分辨率视网膜前膜假体的发展 用于治疗因视网膜变性而导致的无法治愈的失明的装置。我们的做法是 开发用于视网膜神经节的高分辨率、多电极刺激的新技术 细胞在离体视网膜，作为一个实验室平台，开发必要的方法， 恢复视力该项目的主要目标是（1）开发检测和避免 破坏人工图像的轴突束的意外激活，（2）开发方法 有效地刺激特定细胞和细胞类型，同时避免刺激其他细胞，和 (3)开发时空模式刺激和高密度记录和刺激 用于中央视网膜，这是高分辨率视觉所必需的。为了实现这些目标， 预计将支持开发一种设备，可以模拟神经代码的 视网膜上，一个细胞接一个细胞，一个尖峰接一个尖峰，在一个相当大的区域。独特的技术方法 所采用的技术涉及大规模、高分辨率的电记录和刺激， 通过新颖的分析、成像和计算方法来优化人工视觉， 信号了我们的愿景是，这项工作将有助于下一代视网膜假体的设计 支持先进视觉功能的设备，如物体识别和运动传感， 人类病人

Project Summary/Abstract The goal of our work is to advance the development of high-resolution epiretinal prosthetic devices for treating incurable blindness from retinal degeneration. We approach this by developing novel techniques for high-resolution, multi-electrode stimulation of retinal ganglion cells in the isolated retina, as a laboratory platform for developing the necessary approaches for restoring vision. The major goals of this project are to (1) develop methods to detect and avoid the unintended activation of axon bundles that corrupts the artificial image, (2) develop methods to efficiently stimulate specific cells and cell types while avoiding stimulation of other cells, and (3) develop spatiotemporally patterned stimulation and high-density recording and stimulation for use in the central retina, which is necessary for high-resolution vision. Tackling these aims is anticipated to support the development of a device that can emulate the neural code of the retina, cell-by-cell and spike-by-spike, over a substantial area. The unique technical approach employed involves large-scale, high-resolution electrical recording and stimulation, combined with novel analysis, imaging, and computational approaches to optimize the artificial visual signal. Our vision is that this work will aid the design of the next generation of retinal prosthetic devices to support advanced visual functions, such as object recognition and motion sensing, in human patients.