Funding Agency:

National Institute of Health

Total Project Period:

9/01/06 - 8/31/12

Total Project Award:

$53,829

Principal Investigator:

Andrew Schwartz, MD

Co-Investigator:

Elizabeth Tyler-Kabara, MD, PhD

Project Summary:

As a continuation of the original project titled “Cortical control of a dexterous prosthetic hand”, the proposed work will extend animal investigations to individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI).

Over the last 15 years, we have demonstrated that activity recorded from populations of motor cortical neurons can be used to control external devices in the laboratory. Using non-human primates, we have progressed from 3D movement in virtual reality to control of an anthropomorphic arm in a self-feeding task, to our current paradigm in which a complex arm with a shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand is used to reach out, orient to and grasp objects.

Our objective has been to increase control complexity to accomplish the kind of movements performed with an intact arm and hand. To date, we have been very successful in producing skilled, smooth, and accurate movements resembling those performed naturally.

The development of the APL hand, with its near-human dexterous capability, now makes it likely that we will be able to add skilled hand and finger behaviors to the repertoire of tasks that can be carried out with this paradigm. It is exactly these movements that quadriplegics most desire as a means of increasing their quality of life.

We are excited by the prospect of providing this technology, for the first time, to those who are paralyzed and propose to do so in this new project, with the aim of using electrocorticography (ECoG)-based brain control to perform various reaching and grasping movements essential for daily living.