Award Abstract # 2236238
CAREER: Multi-channel, Sub-microliter Implants for Selective Neuromodulation

NSF Org: ECCS
Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems
Recipient: BOISE STATE UNIVERSITY
Initial Amendment Date: February 14, 2023
Latest Amendment Date: February 14, 2023
Award Number: 2236238
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: Richard Nash
rnash@nsf.gov
 (703)292-5394
ECCS
 Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems
ENG
 Directorate for Engineering
Start Date: September 1, 2023
End Date: August 31, 2028 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $521,218.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $521,218.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2023 = $521,218.00
History of Investigator:
  • Benjamin Johnson (Principal Investigator)
    bcjohnson@boisestate.edu
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Boise State University
1910 UNIVERSITY DR
BOISE
ID  US  83725-0001
(208)426-1574
Sponsor Congressional District: 02
Primary Place of Performance: Boise State University
1910 UNIVERSITY DR
BOISE
ID  US  83725-0001
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
02
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): HYWTVM5HNFM3
Parent UEI: HYWTVM5HNFM3
NSF Program(s): CCSS-Comms Circuits & Sens Sys,
EPSCoR Co-Funding
Primary Program Source: 01002324DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s): 7564, 9150, 1045, 108E
Program Element Code(s): 756400, 915000
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.041, 47.083

ABSTRACT

Bioelectronic medicine can revolutionize how we practice medicine in offering effective non-opioid pain management, and providing compelling alternatives to other pharmaceuticals for conditions such as epilepsy, traumatic brain injury, high blood pressure, rheumatoid arthritis, sleep apnea, urinary incontinence, and treatment-resistant depression. Bioelectronic medicines are neurotechnology devices that read and modulate the electrical activity of the body?s nervous system to control, regulate, or restore function. Medical care that uses these devices to continuously monitor physiological biomarkers and autonomously deliver therapy will significantly reduce clinician burden, improve patient compliance, and reduce adverse drug reactions and abuse. However, current bioelectronic medicine devices are too large to target small nerves for effective therapy, deliver indiscriminate stimulation on large nerves resulting in significant off-target effects, and lack the sophistication for closed-loop, automated processing. This project will address these issues through key innovations in circuit design, system development, and closed-loop control. Project impact is extended through a multi-tiered education initiative to bolster the local semiconductor and neurotechnology workforce with collaboration from industry experts.

This project will develop a wireless, miniaturized neurotechnology interface that selectively records and stimulates from specific fascicles within a larger nerve. The proposed work will make advances in three areas. First, the project will develop and validate a new stimulation technique that significantly reduces the volume of an implant and improves its safety and reliability regardless of electrode size. Second, the project will develop a new bi-directional wireless link that exceeds state-of-the-art efficiencies by co-design recording, stimulation, and wireless circuitry. Lastly, the project will use this new interface to evaluate machine learning optimization systems in a closed-loop experiment that targets specific nerve fascicles in the sciatic nerve of an animal model.

This project is jointly funded by ECCS and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

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Bandali, Mehdi and Riley, Morgan and Johnson, Benjamin C "A 4-Channel 0.23$mm^{2}$ Voltage-to-Time Converter AFE with $3.7\mu V_{rms}$ Noise and $480nW$ Galvanic Impulse Uplink" , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1109/MWSCAS60917.2024.10658812 Citation Details
Riley, Morgan and Tala, FNU and Bandali, Mehdi and Johnson, Benjamin C. "Wireless Galvanic Impulse Communication for High-Throughput, Low-Power, Miniaturized Neuromodulation Implants" , 2023 https://doi.org/10.1109/EMBC40787.2023.10340538 Citation Details
Riley, Morgan and Tala, FNU and Bandali, Mehdi and Johnson, Katherine J and Johnson, Benjamin C "Micro Scale Implantable Bioelectronic Interfaces for Targeted Nerve Stimulation and Ultra Low Power Wireless Data Transmission" , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1109/WMED61554.2024.10534141 Citation Details
Riley, Morgan and Tala, FNU and Johnson, Katherine J and Johnson, Benjamin C "Multi-Channel Microscale Nerve Cuffs for Spatially Selective Neuromodulation" Micromachines , v.15 , 2024 https://doi.org/10.3390/mi15081036 Citation Details
Riley, Morgan and Tala, FNU and Johnson, Katherine J. and Johnson, Benjamin C. "Fully Customizable, Low-Cost, Multi-Contact Nerve Cuffs for Spatially Selective Neuromodulation" , 2023 https://doi.org/10.1109/EMBC40787.2023.10340814 Citation Details
Tala, FNU and Johnson, Benjamin C "On-Chip Active Pulse-Clamp Stimulation (APCS) for Rapid Recovery, Charge-Balanced Neural Stimulation" , 2024 https://doi.org/10.1109/MWSCAS60917.2024.10658858 Citation Details

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