Biodegradable electrodes

Implantable MEAs can be used to observe and modulate the nervous system. Due to the consistent hurdles presented by the tissue response of the nervous system to implanted electrodes, researchers have endeavored to make implantable MEAs more biocompatible by reducing the effective footprint that MEAs have on host tissues. It is believed that the footprint of implanted MEAs in the nervous system can be reduced by fabricating MEAs which have material characteristics that more closely match the properties of host tissues. This is accomplished by reducing MEA dimensions to sub-cellular size, utilizing softer biomaterials, and incorporating bioabsorbable compounds. However, as implantable microelectrodes become softer and smaller, new challenges for the implantation of these devices have arisen in recent years. Ultrasmall and flexible MEAs typically require the aid of an auxiliary shuttle for successful implantation into the nervous system which can complicate the practical application of these devices since there is a need to implant multiple ultrasmall flexible MEAs into the brain to achieve large-volume, high density recording or stimulation in the nervous system. We are currently working to create implantable MEAs which are completely biodegradable or have biodegradable elements to eliminate the need for auxiliary shuttles in the central nervous system and are completely bioabsorbable in the peripheral nervous system.

Kozai, T. D. Y.; Gugel, Z.; Li, X.; Gilgunn, P. J.; Khilwani, R.; Ozdoganlar, O. B.; Fedder, G. K.; Weber, D. J.; Cui, X. T. Chronic Tissue Response to Carboxymethyl Cellulose Based Dissolvable Insertion Needle for Ultra-Small Neural Probes. Biomaterials 2014, 35 (34), 9255–9268.