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.
The goal of the proposed work is to substantially enhance the function of retinal prosthetic devices for treating incurable blindness. We use electrical recordings and stimulation of the isolated retina, with specialized multi-electrode technology and approaches designed to resemble the function of a future high-resolution prosthesis, to efficiently interface with the neural circuitry of the retina and provide it with artificial visual signals. This research will advance the design of the next generation of prostheses, devices that can support advanced visual functions in human patients, such as object recognition and seeing movement.
| Ravi, Sneha; Ahn, Daniel; Greschner, Martin et al. (2018) Pathway-Specific Asymmetries between ON and OFF Visual Signals. J Neurosci 38:9728-9740 |
| Grosberg, Lauren E; Ganesan, Karthik; Goetz, Georges A et al. (2017) Activation of ganglion cells and axon bundles using epiretinal electrical stimulation. J Neurophysiol 118:1457-1471 |
| Jepson, Lauren H; Hottowy, Pawe?; Mathieson, Keith et al. (2014) Spatially patterned electrical stimulation to enhance resolution of retinal prostheses. J Neurosci 34:4871-81 |
| Jepson, Lauren H; Hottowy, Pawel; Weiner, Geoffrey A et al. (2014) High-fidelity reproduction of spatiotemporal visual signals for retinal prosthesis. Neuron 83:87-92 |
| Jepson, Lauren H; Hottowy, Pawel; Mathieson, Keith et al. (2013) Focal electrical stimulation of major ganglion cell types in the primate retina for the design of visual prostheses. J Neurosci 33:7194-205 |
| Sekirnjak, Chris; Jepson, Lauren H; Hottowy, Pawel et al. (2011) Changes in physiological properties of rat ganglion cells during retinal degeneration. J Neurophysiol 105:2560-71 |
