New Implant Lets Paralyzed Rats Walk Again, Swiss Federal Institute Of Technology Study

An experimental flexible implant that connects directly to the spinal cord might someday lead to a treatment for people with spinal cord injuries, and could possibly help people with paraplegia move again, researchers say. Now, researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne have built such an implant. They call the soft, stretchable device "e-dura," after the dura mater, which is one of the layers of protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord. The researchers implanted the device into rats — it rests on the spinal cord, and delivers electric signals, as well as drugs, to the surrounding nerves, triggering them to fire impulses.

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