We propose to build a hermetically sealed implantable stimulation and recording system to enable closed-loop experiments while mitigating the need for percutaneous leads. The IRIS (Implantable Recording with Integrated Stimulation) is a fully implantable system capable of both stimulating and recording on large numbers of channels (96 channels). Our implantable technology will provide primate researchers with the ability to perform long-duration experiments without risking animal or investigator safety. These experiments will pave the way towards developing novel translational solutions involving both recording and stimulation. Current electrophysiological recording and stimulation systems require percutaneous pedestals that present a constant danger of infection, a source of distraction and irritation to the animal, and require extensive attention from investigators to clean and maintain. Infection is the leading cause of implant failure, and annually results in enormous costs in terms of both investigator?s time and monetary resources. Ripple proposes to develop the Grapevine IRIS to address this problem. Ripple has developed component technologies as part of other ongoing development projects, including: telemetry protocols for robust inductive powering and high-bandwidth transmission of neural signals via IR, advanced amplifier chips capable of low-noise, low-power performance for detecting neural signals, a stimulation chip optimized for implantable neural interface applications, and a system architecture for portable programmable neural interface experiments. In this project, we will combine these components into a small implantable hermetic package to enable transformative experiments to increase the understanding of dynamic signaling in the nervous system.
Understanding the dynamics of neural activity requires new tools to record and manipulate neural signals in real- time in cortical electrophysiology experiments. We proposed to develop the Grapevine IRIS (Implantable Recording with Integrated Stimulation) system to provide a research platform to enable longer, safer, and better chronic animal studies.
