Melding Man and Machine

Muscle cells that grow on a biological scaffold can connect to severed nerves remaining from a lost limb. Image courtesty of Paul Cederna

From the Wire: Tiny implants that connect to nerve cells could improve control prosthetic limbs, according to an article recently published by Technology Review. Seeded with muscle cells, the novel implant could integrate prosthetic limbs with the body, allowing amputees improved control over robotic appendages. The construct, developed at the University of Michigan, consists of tiny cups, made from an electrically conductive polymer, that fit on nerve endings and attract the severed nerves. Electrical signals coming from the nerve can then be translated and used to move the limb.

“This looks like it could be an elegant way to control a prosthetic with fine movement,” says Rutledge Ellis-Behnke, a scientist at MIT who was not involved in the research. “Rather than having a big dumb piece of plastic strapped to the arm, you could actually have an integrated tool that feels like it’s part of the body.”

Today, movement of most prostheses is effortful and limited. The limbs are controlled by conscious movement of remaining muscle–the wearer might contract a chest muscle to move the arm in a certain direction, for example. Wiring residual nerves directly to artificial limbs would provide a more intuitive way to control them. But efforts to build peripheral nerve interfaces have been hampered in large part by the growth of scar tissue, which limits the utility and durability of implanted devices.

More information is available from Technology Review.

Tags: Implants, MIT, prosthetics, Technology Review