Wireless optoelectronic devices for vagus nerve stimulation in mice
Language English Country Great Britain, England Media electronic
Document type Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
- Keywords
- flexible electronics, neuromodulation, optoelectronics, peripheral nerve stimulation, vagus nerve stimulation, wireless stimulator,
- MeSH
- Wireless Technology * MeSH
- Mice MeSH
- Vagus Nerve Stimulation * instrumentation MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Check Tag
- Mice MeSH
- Animals MeSH
- Publication type
- Journal Article MeSH
- Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
Objective.Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is a promising approach for the treatment of a wide variety of debilitating conditions, including autoimmune diseases and intractable epilepsy. Much remains to be learned about the molecular mechanisms involved in vagus nerve regulation of organ function. Despite an abundance of well-characterized rodent models of common chronic diseases, currently available technologies are rarely suitable for the required long-term experiments in freely moving animals, particularly experimental mice. Due to challenging anatomical limitations, many relevant experiments require miniaturized, less invasive, and wireless devices for precise stimulation of the vagus nerve and other peripheral nerves of interest. Our objective is to outline possible solutions to this problem by using nongenetic light-based stimulation.Approach.We describe how to design and benchmark new microstimulation devices that are based on transcutaneous photovoltaic stimulation. The approach is to use wired multielectrode cuffs to test different stimulation patterns, and then build photovoltaic stimulators to generate the most optimal patterns. We validate stimulation through heart rate analysis.Main results.A range of different stimulation geometries are explored with large differences in performance. Two types of photovoltaic devices are fabricated to deliver stimulation: photocapacitors and photovoltaic flags. The former is simple and more compact, but has limited efficiency. The photovoltaic flag approach is more elaborate, but highly efficient. Both can be used for wireless actuation of the vagus nerve using light impulses.Significance.These approaches can enable studies in small animals that were previously challenging, such as long-termin vivostudies for mapping functional vagus nerve innervation. This new knowledge may have potential to support clinical translation of VNS for treatment of select inflammatory and neurologic diseases.
Department of Mathematics KTH 11428 Stockholm Sweden
Department of Physics Faculty of Science University of Zagreb Bijenička c 32 10000 Zagreb Croatia
Laboratory of Organic Electronics Campus Norrköping Linköping University SE 60174 Norrköping Sweden
Stockholm Center for Bioelectronic Medicine MedTechLabs Karolinska University Hospital Solna Sweden
Wallenberg Centre for Molecular Medicine Linköping University SE 58185 Linköping Sweden
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