Computational Neuroscience - Changing the Mind and Body

Computational neuroscience is one of the newest subcategories of neuroscience, it uses machine learning and single cell modeling to model brain function. The information collected from the brain is put into terms that can be understood, by comparing it to the way a computer processes information. With the collection of data and comparing it to a known factor, neurologist hope to find out how the brain processes information and translate it into a response.

From what these neuroscientists have learn about information processing of the brain, we now not only better understand the brain but also the body and how it works as a whole. One can think of the brain as the hard drive and the ram, while the spinal cord is all the wiring that attaches the keyboard to the monitor and the monitor to the hard drive. Without these wires being correctly connected, parts or the whole computer will not work correctly and same for the brain. This understanding has led great advances in helping those who suffer from spinal cord injuries. With spinal cord injuries, the wiring between the brain and the spinal cord become severed causing problems such as paralysis or even death.

With the understanding gained from studying that wiring between the spinal cord and the brain, researchers have made it possible to reconnect those severed wires, so that someone with paralysis can regain use of their limbs. 24-year-old Ian Burkhart from Dublin, Ohio, became one of the first people to have their limbs reanimated after breaking his neck, damaging his spinal cord. Researchers, with the past research, were able to see how after injury the brain does reorganize but not as much as originally thought. While some connects are reorganized, many are just left severed and unable to send neural impulses, which leads to paralysis. With the help of fMRI, researchers locate the motor cortex and implant a chip, that when activated will send electrical signals to the limbs. With this discovery, Ian Burkhart has begun to regain his independence with the use of his arms.

Not only has computational neuroscience lead to the reanimation of arms, but it has also found a way to give quadriplegics the ability to walk again.  The research led to the development of a ‘stentrode, a 3cm-long stent containing 12 electrodes, which is placed in the motor cortex through the jugular vein. With the help of a 'stentrode', which is a 3cm-long stent containing 12 electrodes, placed in the motor cortex through the jugular vein, allows the motor cortex to send neural signals to a computer interface that will cause movement in a bionic limb. This has led to quadriplegics to walk using the combination of the ‘stentrode’ and bionic legs as well as use their arms again. This discovery has given back the independence and the freedom that has been taken away by the damage done to their spinal cord. This is not just about giving people the ability to freely move back, but also give people their lives back. This technology is growing every day and is projected to be able to be used with other medical illnesses that cause a disability, such as seizures and motor neuron disease.

Works Cited

Albert, Mark V. "The Limits of Relying on Correlations in Traditional Neuroscience." Neuroscience Seminar. Loyola University Chicago, Chicago. 26 Sept. 2017. Lecture. 

Geddes, Linda. "First Paralysed Person to Be 'reanimated' Offers Neuroscience Insights." Nature News. Nature Publishing Group, 13 Apr. 2016. Web. 

May Professor of Neurophysiology, Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Clive. "How 'mind-controlled' Bionic Devices Could Help Quadriplegics Walk." The Conversation. N.p., 9 Feb. 2016. Web.