Medical Design Briefs - November 2024 - 44

when the patient imagines writing it by
hand, contains very specific markers,
which the researchers have named distinctive
neural codes (DNCs). Instead of processing
thousands of bytes of data for each
letter, the microchip only needs to process
the DNCs, which are around a hundred
bytes. This makes the system fast, accurate,
and with low-power consumption.
This breakthrough also allows for faster
training times, making learning how to
use the BMI easier and more accessible.
Collaborations with other
teams
at EPFL's Neuro-X and IEM Institutes,
such as with the laboratories of
Grégoire Courtine, Silvestro Micera,
Stéphanie Lacour, and David Atienza
promise to create the next generation
of integrated BMI systems. Shoaran,
Shaeri, and their team are exploring
various applications for the MiBMI
system beyond handwriting recognition.
" We are collaborating with other
research groups to test the system
in different contexts, such as speech
decoding and movement control. Our
goal is to develop a versatile BMI that
can be tailored to various neurological
disorders, providing a broader
range of solutions for patients, " says
Shoaran.
This article was written by Michael
David Mitchell, EPFL. For more information,
contact Mahsa Shoaran at
mahsa.shoaran@epfl.ch or visit https://
actu.epfl.ch.
High-Tech Bandages Could Fend Off Infections,
Improve Healing
Therapeutic dressings
inhibit dangerous
biofilms through
antibacterial agents
and electrical
stimulation.
Binghamton University
Binghamton, NY
When wounds happen, we want
them to heal quickly and without
complications, but sometimes infections
and other complications
prevent it. Chronic wounds are a
significant health concern affecting
tens of millions of Americans.
Binghamton University Prof.
Seokheun " Sean " Choi has some
ideas about how to improve the
healing process, pulling together
his recent research on biodegradable
papertronics and bacteriafueled
biobatteries.
age. As long as there are nutrients,
they will produce an
almost unlimited number of
antibacterial agents.
Improving antibacterial effectiveness
even further, the
team successfully added copper
oxide and tin oxide
nanoparticles
to the sporecarrying
bacteria to generate
a tiny amount of power. When
channeled into the wound
area, the electric
seems to break down the cell
integrity of the infecting microbes
and stimulate healing.
The researchers tested
New research on wound care at Binghamton University combines ideas about
biodegradable papertronics and bacteria-fueled biobatteries. (Credit: Binghamton
University)
In a paper published in the journal
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, Choi
and two PhD students from his Bioelectronics
and Microsystems Lab - Maryam
Rezaie and Zahra Rafiee - propose therapeutic
dressings that inhibit dangerous
biofilms by incorporating spore-forming
bacteria that produce antibacterial agents
as well as controlled electrical stimulation
powered by biobatteries.
" We have very beneficiary skin bacteria
that facilitate systematic immune defense.
When you have a wound, this skin
bacteria help with healing, " says Choi, a
faculty member at the Thomas J. Watson
College of Engineering and Applied Sci44
ence's
Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering.
" The problem is that this environment
is perfect for pathogen invasion
because it's nutrient-rich, moist and
warm, " he says. " When they start to form
a biofilm, it's really hard to eradicate
those pathogens, and the wound-healing
process can be extended, sometimes
for a year or longer. "
The Binghamton team improves on
previous research on live bacterial therapeutics
in several ways. The bacteria are
better integrated into the dressings and
stay dormant until they activate on the
wound itself, allowing for long-term storwww.medicaldesignbriefs.com
their
paper-based dressing on
simulated human skin and
pig skin with promising results,
but more investigation
is required before the process
is ready for human use.
" The beauty of using paper
is that it is disposable, so you
don't need to worry about a second infection
after you use it, but the future
work is necessary, " Choi says. " We don't
clearly understand how this electrical
stimulation heals the wound infections.
One guess is that the membranes of a
bacterial cells were damaged, but the
type of electrical stimulation or how
long in duration or how frequently to
make it effective is something we need
to study further. "
This article was written by Chris Kocher,
Binghamton University. For more information,
contact Seokheun (Sean)
Choi at sechoi@binghamton.edu or visit
www.binghamton.edu.
Medical Design Briefs, November 2024
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Medical Design Briefs - November 2024

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