Papers

Utzschmid, A., Terlau, J., Held, L. M., Schiffl, L. F., Chen, H., Alkan, G., Favero, P., Wagner, A., Gempt, J., Meyer, B., Jacob, S. N. Abstact Implantable brain-computer interfaces (iBCIs) with single-neuron resolution are showing great promise for restoring mobility and communication in individuals with spinal cord injury or motor neuron disease. Stroke is the most common cause of acquired brain injury and a major contributor to long-term disability, making chronic stroke a

Moure, P., Granley, J., Grani, F., Soo, L., Lozano, A., López-Peco, R., Villamarín-Ortiz, A., Soto-Sánchez, C., Liu, Shih-Chii, Beyeler, M., Fernandez, E. Abstact Visual cortical prostheses offer a promising path to sight restoration, but current systems elicit crude, variable percepts and rely on manual electrode-by-electrode calibration that does not scale. These limitations reflect a deeper challenge: electrical microstimulation evokes nonlinear, state-dependent population

Valle, G., Oswalt, D., Gaunt, R. A., Roelfsema, P., Greenspon, C. M., Fernandez, E. Abstract The restoration of sensory function following injury or disease represents a critical challenge in neuroengineering. Sensory neuroprostheses, particularly those targeting the primary visual (V1) and somatosensory (S1) cortices, promise to bypass damaged afferent pathways and reintroduce sensory percepts through direct cortical stimulation. Building on foundational insights from non-hu

Orlemann, C., De Santis, L.M., Neering, P., Boehler, C., Sharma, K., Aarts, A., Holzhammer, T., van Daal, R.J.J., Ruther, P., Asplund, M., Kooijmans, R.N., Roelfsema, P.R. Abstract One of the biggest challenges for neurotechnology is the design of devices that are tolerated well by brain tissue, without sacrificing functionality and implantability. This study examined which design choices mitigate tissue damage and improve longevity by varying probe features implanted in the

Saussus, O. De Schrijver, S., Garcia Ramirez, J., Decramer, T., Janssen, P. Abstract We present an innovative intracortical brain-computer interface (BCI) to bridge the gap between laboratory settings and real-world applications. This BCI approach introduces three key advancements. First, we used neural signals from three macaque brain regions—primary motor, dorsal, and ventral premotor cortex—enabling precise and flexible decoding of real-time three-dimensional (3D) sphere/a

Schiffl, L. F., Held, L. M., Waitzmann, F., Eder, M., Chen, H., Alkan, G., Favero, P., Utzschmid, A., Eisenkolb, V. M., Grosse-Wentrup, M., Gjorgjieva, J., Wagner, A., Gempt, J., Meyer, B., Jacob, S. N. Abstact Human language depends on highly specialized left-hemispheric brain networks. Damage to these networks causes severe language impairments (aphasia), one of the most common, debilitating and costly consequences of left-hemispheric brain injury, especially stroke. The li

Alfaro, A., Soo, L., Waclawczyk, D., Morollón, R., Grani, F., Fernandez, E. Abstract We describe the case of a participant in a clinical trial investigating intracortical microstimulation of the visual cortex to provide a limited yet functional sense of vision to the profoundly blind. Prior to his formal enrolment, he was completely blind due to bilateral Non-arteritic Anterior Ischemic Optic Neuropathy. Following the initiation of brain electrical microstimulation experiment

Lozano, A., Chen, X., La Grouw, M., Li, B., Wang, F., van der Grinten, M., Soto-Sánchez, C., Morales-Gregorio, A., Fernández E. and Roelfsema, P.R. Abstract Background High-channel-count neuroprostheses could one day restore functional vision in blind individuals by delivering electrical pulses to electrodes in the visual cortex that elicit perceptions known as ‘phosphenes’. However, if a high number of electrodes are used, it becomes challenging and time-consuming to map the

Grani, F., Soto-Sánchez, C., Rodil, A., López-Peco, R., González, P., Fernández, E. Abstract Blindness is one of the most impactful disabilities in human lives. Cortical prostheses could one day restore functional vision in some blind subjects, but their success will depend on integrating advanced technologies to realize the therapeutic benefits they promise. Most previous studies in humans used electrodes only for stimulation, which has made it challenging to precisely contr

Valle, G. Abstract Somatosensory feedback is an essential feature of neural prostheses that aim to restore natural hand dexterity after neurological injuries. This Comment discusses the potential and challenges of electrically stimulating sensory neurons, highlighting the need for highly selective neurotechnology and biomimetic-encoding algorithms for effective brain–machine interfacing. Read More at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s44287-025-00218-x

Germer, C., Farina, D., Baker, S. N., Del Vecchio, A. Abstract Objective. The identification of individual neuronal activity from multielectrode arrays poses significant challenges, including handling data from numerous electrodes, resolving overlapping action potentials and tracking activity across long recordings. This study introduces NeuroNella, an automated algorithm developed to address these challenges. Approach. NeuroNella employs blind source separation to leverage t

Sîmpetru, R. C., Braun, D. I., Simon, A. U., März, M., Cnejevici, V., Souza de Oliveira, D., Weber, N., Walter, J., Franke, J., Höglinger, D., Prahm, C., Ponfick, M., Del Vecchio, A. Abstract Restoring motor function in individuals with spinal cord injuries (SCIs), strokes, or amputations is a crucial challenge. Recent studies show that spared motor neurons can still be voluntarily controlled using surface electromyography (EMG), even without visible movement. To harness thes

Feulner, B., Perich, M. G., Miller, L. E., Clopath, C., Gallego, J. A. Abstact Animals use feedback to rapidly correct ongoing movements in the presence of a perturbation. Repeated exposure to a predictable perturbation leads to behavioural adaptation that compensates for its effects. Here, we tested the hypothesis that all the processes necessary for motor adaptation may emerge as properties of a controller that adaptively updates its policy. We trained a recurrent neural ne

Valle, G., Alamri, A. H., Downey, J. E., Lienkämper, R., Jordan, P. M., Sobinov, A. R., Endsley, L. J., Prasad, D., Boninger, M. L., Collinger, J. L., Warnke, P. C., Hatsopoulos, N. G., Miller, L. E., Gaunt, R. A., Greenspon, C. M., Bensmaia, S. J. Abstract Intracortical microstimulation (ICMS) of somatosensory cortex evokes tactile sensations whose properties can be systematically manipulated by varying stimulation parameters. However, ICMS currently provides an imperfect s

Greenspon, C. M., Valle, G., Shelchkova, N. D., Hobbs, T. G., Verbaarschot, C., Callier, T., Berger-Wolf, E. I., Okorokova, E. V., Hutchison, B. C., Dogruoz, E., Sobinov, A. R., Jordan, P. M., Weiss, J. M., Fitzgerald, E. E., Prasad, E., Van Driesche, A., He, Q., Liu, F., Kirsch, R. F., Miller, J. P., Lee, R. C., Satzer, D., Gonzalez-Martinez, J., Warnke, P. C., Bensmaia, S. J. Abstract Tactile feedback from brain-controlled bionic hands can be partially restored via intracor

Bashford, L., Rosenthal, I. A., Kellis, S., Bjånes, D., Pejsa, K., Brunton, B. W., Andersen, R. A. Abstact Objective. A crucial goal in brain–machine interfacing is the long-term stability of neural decoding performance, ideally without regular retraining. Long-term stability has only been previously demonstrated in non-human primate experiments and only in primary sensorimotor cortices. Here we extend previous methods to determine long-term stability in humans by identifying

Oliveira, D. S., Ponfick, M., I Braun, D., Osswald, M., Sierotowicz, M., Chatterjee, S., Weber, D., Eskofier, B., Castellini, C., Farina, D., Kinfe, T. M., Del Vecchio, A. Abstract Paralysis of the muscles controlling the hand dramatically limits the quality of life for individuals living with spinal cord injury (SCI). Here, with a non-invasive neural interface, we demonstrate that eight motor complete SCI individuals (C5-C6) are still able to task-modulate in real-time the a

Safaie, M., Chang, J. C., Park, J., Miller, L. E., Dudman, J. T., Perich, M. G., Gallego, J. A. Abstact Animals of the same species exhibit similar behaviours that are advantageously adapted to their body and environment. These behaviours are shaped at the species level by selection pressures over evolutionary timescales. Yet, it remains unclear how these common behavioural adaptations emerge from the idiosyncratic neural circuitry of each individual. The overall organization

Gallego, J. A., Makin, T. R., McDougle, S.D. Abstact Brain–computer interfaces (BCIs) for movement restoration typically decode the user’s intent from neural activity in their primary motor cortex (M1) and use this information to enable ‘mental control’ of an external device. Here, we argue that activity in M1 has both too little and too much information for optimal decoding: too little, in that many regions beyond it contribute unique motor outputs and have movement-related

Andersen, R. A., Aflalo, T., Bashford, L., Bjånes, D., Kellis, S. Abstact Traditional brain–machine interfaces decode cortical motor commands to control external devices. These commands are the product of higher-level cognitive processes, occurring across a network of brain areas, that integrate sensory information, plan upcoming motor actions, and monitor ongoing movements. We review cognitive signals recently discovered in the human posterior parietal cortex during neuropro