Real-time monitoring and intervention of specific behaviors by simultaneous recordings of multiple brain regions

Unmet Need

There is a need for more effective and precise methods to predict and regulate neurological behaviors, such as aggression, in mammals. Current treatments and behavioral interventions often fail to accurately prevent the onset of such behaviors or mitigate them in real-time. The gap in the market lies in the lack of systems that can predict these behaviors based on brain activity and intervene in a timely manner.

Technology

Duke inventors have developed a system for brain state stimulation. This is intended to be used for therapeutic or research purposes to predict and suppress neurological behaviors like aggression. The system consists of a plurality of microwire electrodes implanted in the brain, which receive electrical activity signals from multiple regions of the brain. A controller processes these signals and predicts the time of onset of the neurological behavior, sending a stimulation signal to the brain before it occurs to prevent or reduce the behavior. Specifically, the system uses machine learning models to generate predictions based on the electrical activity from regions such as the prefrontal cortex, amygdala, and other associated brain regions. This has been demonstrated in preclinical models, where the system was able to accurately predict and mitigate aggressive states by applying stimulation, such as closed-loop optogenetic stimulation to the prefrontal cortex to mitigate aggressive behaviors in real time.

Other Applications

This technology could also be applied to regulate other types of maladaptive behaviors associated with psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety, depression, or impulsive actions. Further applications might include enhancing cognitive functions or controlling other brain states for therapeutic purposes.

Advantages

• Real time: predictive intervention to prevent the onset of specific behaviors.
• Multi-region decoding: allows high accuracy and temporal resolution in predicting behavior
• Optogenetic: stimulation delivers spatiotemporally precise control of brain activity.