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Scientists Create ‘Living’ Electronic Sensor

In a significant advance that could transform the field of neural monitoring, researchers have developed a bioelectronic implant that grows and adapts alongside living tissue – a feat that has long eluded medical device developers.

The groundbreaking technology, unveiled in a recent Nature Communications study, represents a fundamental shift in how medical devices interact with the human body. Unlike traditional rigid silicon-based implants, this new sensor uses soft, organic materials that more closely match the body’s natural environment.

“For our innovation, we used organic polymer materials that are inherently closer to us biologically, and we designed it to interact with ions, because the language of the brain and body is ionic, not electronic,” explains Dr. Dion Khodagholy, Henry Samueli Faculty Excellence Professor at UC Irvine’s Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.

The development addresses a long-standing challenge in medical device technology. While advanced electronics have made remarkable progress in recent decades, their fundamental incompatibility with human physiology has limited their potential in medical applications. Traditional implants, typically made of rigid silicon, can cause tissue damage and often fail to maintain consistent contact with growing or moving organs.

A Single Material Solution

The research team’s innovation lies in their novel approach to transistor design. Instead of using different materials to account for varying signal types – a common practice that increases toxicity risks – they developed an asymmetric design that enables operation using a single, biocompatible material.

Duncan Wisniewski, first author of the study and a visiting scholar at UC Irvine, describes the working principle: “A transistor is like a simple valve that controls the flow of current. By designing devices with asymmetrical contacts, we can control the doping location in the channel and switch the focus from negative potential to positive potential.”

This simplification in design has far-reaching implications. The technology can be manufactured at scale and potentially adapted for various biological monitoring applications beyond its initial neurological focus.

Pediatric Applications Show Promise

One of the most promising aspects of the new technology is its potential impact on pediatric medicine. Dr. Jennifer Gelinas, UC Irvine associate professor and physician at Children’s Hospital of Orange County, emphasizes the device’s unique ability to adapt to growing tissue – a crucial feature for pediatric applications.

The technology has already demonstrated success in laboratory testing, where it maintained functionality while conforming to changing tissue structures during organism growth. This adaptability stands in stark contrast to conventional rigid implants, which typically fail to accommodate developmental changes.

Future Implications

The implications of this technology extend beyond its immediate neurological applications. The researchers suggest their innovation could pave the way for a new generation of medical devices that can more naturally integrate with the human body.

“We demonstrated our ability to create robust complementary, integrated circuits that are capable of high-quality acquisition and processing of biological signals,” Khodagholy notes, adding that these devices “will substantially broaden the application of bioelectronics to devices that have traditionally relied on bulky, nonbiocompatible components.”

The research, supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, represents a collaborative effort between UC Irvine and Columbia University. As medical device technology continues to evolve, this breakthrough could mark a significant step toward more effective, less invasive medical monitoring and treatment options.


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