The Bernstein-CorTec Prize honors outstanding scientific achievements in doctoral and master’s theses in the field of computational neuroscience and neurotechnology. The prize is awarded annually, alternating between doctoral and master’s theses. In the year 2024, the prize is awarded to doctoral theses.

The two award-winning doctoral theses deal with the following topics:

1. Enya Paschen: Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) is the most common focal epilepsy in adults. Despite advances in pharmacological, surgical and neuromodulatory treatment strategies, many patients do not achieve adequate control of their epileptic seizures. Enya Paschen’s dissertation focussed on the development of new neuromodulation techniques and their effects on seizure activity and cognitive functions in MTLE. She found that low-frequency stimulation (LFS, optogeneric or electrical) in the hippocampus suppresses seizure onset and does not impair core hippocampal functions such as learning, spatial navigation and memory. She was thus able to present LFS as an effective stimulation protocol and an alternative therapeutic approach for treatment-resistant MTLE patients.

2. Eric Klein: His thesis describes the first functional optical cochlear implant (oCI) based on integrated μLEDs successfully applied in vivo. In order to integrate the highest possible number of individually addressable μLEDs, he evaluated different routing schemes, implementing single- and multi-layer metallization. Based on conclusions drawn during the intense evaluation of the first oCI generation (oCI-1), a new single layer interconnection approach was developed, characterized, and found to be more efficient than the commonly used multi-layer based multiplexing scheme for LED arrays. Based on in vivo tests performed in cooperation with project partners, he concluded that a single μLED is capable of efficiently stimulating optogenetically modified nerve cells in the cochlea. It was further demonstrated that the μLED arrays of the oCIs reduce the spectral spread, compared to a clinical style electrical cochlear implant, by up to 5 octaves, thereby providing much higher frequency resolution to the cochlear implant patients.

Enya Paschen works now as Behavioural Pharmacology & EEG Team Leader with Ulysses Neuroscience Limited, a private Irish Research and Development Organisation. Eric Klein is now pursuing his scientific interests as a postdoc in the Inst. for Microystems Engineering (IMTEK) at the University of Freiburg.

Award Lectures

Both awardees will present their research in an Extra Bernstein Seminar on January 14 at 17:15 hours in the Bernstein Center Freiburg. Make sure to already mark your calendars for the upcoming event.

For more information please visit the Bernstein-Center Website

Der Beitrag Bernstein-CorTec Award 2024 goes to two young researchers erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

IRB approval is a critical step in the clinical research process, especially for studies involving human subjects. While FDA approval ensures the safety and technical readiness of the device being studied, the IRB provides an essential layer of oversight to safeguard the ethical conduct of the research. The IRB’s review takes into account the specific local context of the research site, including the population being studied and the resources available, to ensure participant safety. This local oversight is crucial, as it tailors the ethical review process to the unique circumstances of each study, beyond the federal standards.

“Securing FDA approval for our IDE study(1) was a thorough process that involved the submission of extensive documentation from both our team at the University of Washington and the device manufacturer, CorTec,” said Dr. Jeffrey Herron, Assistant Professor at the University of Washington and co-investigator on the NIH-funded study(2). “The FDA’s evaluation focused on the study protocol, hazard analysis, and the device design to ensure readiness for human implantation. Achieving this IDE approval was a critical milestone, and with the following IRB approval, we are now prepared to move forward with participant recruitment.”

According to Dr. Martin Schuettler, CorTec’s CTO, the Brain Interchange System‘s closed-loop functionality is a groundbreaking achievement that opens new avenues for highly individualized treatments. “I am incredibly proud of this milestone,” Dr. Schuettler expressed. “Our system enables a seamless exchange of information between biology and technology, which is why we named it the CorTec Brain Interchange. With this system, we are not only providing the critical technological tools needed to advance new therapies but also shaping the future of brain-computer interfaces and paving the way for future therapy discoveries.”

CorTec is collaborating with leading experts in the U.S. to further the development of innovative therapies using the Brain Interchange System. The first Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) study will be conducted in collaboration with Professor Jeffrey G. Ojemann from the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle and Professor Steven C. Cramer from the University of California, Los Angeles. Funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), this consortium aims to gather initial safety data and develop novel therapeutic rehabilitation approaches for upper limb impairment in stroke patients through direct cortical electrical stimulation delivered by the Brain Interchange System(2).

Patient enrollment and the first implantation of the neural interfacing system are scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2024, marking the beginning of a new chapter in stroke rehabilitation research.

Go to the PDF download of this press release (English Version).

Go to the PDF download of this press release (German Version).

Media Contact:

Carolina Remke – Head of Marketing
pr@cortec-neuro.com
www.cortec-neuro.com

______________________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer: The research reported in this publication is supported by the National Institute Of Neurological Disorders And Stroke of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number UH3NS121565. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
______________________________________________________________________________________
References:
[1] IDE Application reference G230003/A001
[2] NIH Project 1UH3NS121565-01A1: ” Motor Recovery through Plasticity-Inducing Cortical Stimulation”, in response to RFA-NS-18-023: https://reporter.nih.gov/search/-xvTvG85Ukm-KXyunAWaJw/project-details/10357993

Der Beitrag Next Important Milestone Reached for First-in-Human Implantation of the CorTec Brain Interchange System as a Therapeutic Brain-Computer Interface erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

He talks about the study, the improvements he was able to gain due to the implanted electrodes and why he participated. His story is truly unique and we are thankful for all the participants, the consortium of the agilis project and all partners that contributed to this research. We are sure that these amazing results are just the start of amazing improvements of existing therapies. Visit www.aihand.eu/ for deeper insights and to not miss out on future projects – we are very proud to be part of the consortium.

To learn more about the Agilis Project please visit www.inria.fr 

You would like to watch more videos? Go to Médiatheque d’Inria

Der Beitrag Agilis Project – the Story of Ayoub erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

With the Brain Interchange System, CorTec aims to provide a fully implantable closed-loop Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) to clinicians for the investigation of therapies. According to CorTec CTO Dr. Martin Schuettler, this closed-loop functionality provides new possibilities for highly individualized treatments. He states, “The system is capable of interchanging information between biology and technology, between brain and computer. That’s why we call it CorTec Brain Interchange. With our system, we are providing the technological tools that are needed to develop new therapies and brain-computer interface applications.”

With FDA clearance secured, CorTec joins forces with partners in the USA to continue the development of novel therapies. The first IDE study¹ involving the Brain Interchange System will be conducted in collaboration with one of the world’s leaders in the field, principle investigator professor Jeffrey G. Ojemann from the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle as well as Prof. Steven C. Cramer from the University of California Los Angeles and their respective teams. With funding by the US-American National Institutes of Health (NIH)², the consortium aims at obtaining initial first-in-human safety data and at the development and evaluation of novel therapeutical rehabilitation approaches for upper limb impairment in stroke patients via direct cortical electrical stimulation delivered by the Brain Interchange System. Enrollment of patients and the first implantation of the neural interfacing system are schedule for the third quarter of 2024.

Assistant Professor Dr. Jeffrey Herron from University of Washington is a co-investigator of the NIH funded study and the engineering lead on the project. He explains the importance of the FDA approval for the upcoming IDE study: “In the United States, all studies involving devices which pose a significant risk require the approval by both the FDA and institutional review board prior to participant recruitment. The FDA review of Investigational Device Exemptions for significant risk device studies is a rigorous process involving the submission of extensive documentation by both UW, the research site, and CorTec, the device manufacturer. The FDA makes their determination for a specific study based upon the details of the study protocol, an extensive hazard analysis, and an in-depth evaluation of the manufacturer’s documents pertaining to the design and testing of the device to ensure that it will perform as needed for the study. The fact that UW and CorTec have now received this IDE approval from FDA is an absolutely critical milestone demonstrating a readiness to proceed towards participant recruitment for this study, pending local UW IRB approval.”

CorTec’s CEO, Dr. Oliver Baertl adds, “We are very excited about the feedback from the FDA! This was an important first step for CorTec to support clinical research in the fast growing neuromodulation and Brain Computer Interface space. We foresee many more studies with our device. The first in human use will be the next milestone for our technology and our company.”

Go to the PDF download of this press release (English Version).

Go to the PDF download of this press release (German Version).

Media Contact:

Carolina Remke – Head of Marketing
pr@cortec-neuro.com
www.cortec-neuro.com

______________________________________________________________________________________

Disclaimer: The research reported in this publication is supported by the National Institute Of Neurological Disorders And Stroke of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number UH3NS121565. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

______________________________________________________________________________________

References:

[1] IDE Application reference G230003/A001

[2] NIH Project 1UH3NS121565-01A1: ” Motor Recovery through Plasticity-Inducing Cortical Stimulation”, in response to RFA-NS-18-023: https://reporter.nih.gov/search/-xvTvG85Ukm-KXyunAWaJw/project-details/10357993

Der Beitrag FDA approves Investigational Device Exemption for Early Feasibility Study for rehabilitation of stroke patients using CorTec’s Closed-Loop Brain Interchange implant system. erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

The article is in German and can be read online here: https://www.wirtschaftsforum.de/portraits/cortec-gmbh/neuromodulation-wird-standard-werden

Learn more about our Brain Interchange Technology on our product page: Brain Interchange One

Also visit our Stories for more news and updates related to CorTec, our Team and also our products and User Stories: CorTec Stories

Der Beitrag CorTec in Interview with ‘Wirtschaftsforum’ erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

Three electrical engineers from the Institute of Microelectronics received a Science-Business Cooperation Award for the development of a 32-channel microchip that is used as the heart of a biomedical implant for neuromodulation. Institute director Professor Maurits Ortmanns, Dr. Joachim Becker and Stefan Reich are cooperating closely with CorTec, as part of a long-term BMBF project.

Neuromodulation systems can both record electrical signals from the brain and electrically stimulate nerve tissue in a targeted manner. Particularly promising is so-called “closed-loop” neuromodulation, in which the stimulation parameters are precisely matched to the previously measured bioparameters. Such brain-stimulating medical implants are already being used successfully in the treatment of various neurodegenerative diseases. Therapeutic successes have also been achieved in people suffering from chronic pain or depression. A first version of CorTec’s neuromodulation system is already in the FDA approval process for human application.

Learn more about our Brain Interchange Technology.

Visit our User-Stories and discover intel about our path to human application of the Brain Interchange System.

Read more about the awarding ceremony on the University of Ulm website.

Der Beitrag CorTec receives Science-Business Cooperation Award 2022 erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

Dr. Oliver Baertl, CEO of CorTec, expresses his excitement about the grant, “At CorTec we are dedicated to communicating with the brain for the cure of disease. With the support of the EIC Accelerator program we will be able to leverage our neuromodulation platform to advance our stroke rehabilitation device.  We see huge potential in this particular indication, helping many individuals to better recover from a stroke”.

Claus Freyinger, Chief Regulatory and Clinical Officer at CorTec, also commented, “We look forward to using this grant to further advance our research and development to unlock the full potential of Brain Interchange for stroke rehabilitation therapy with our clinical partners in the U.S., and Europe as soon as possible.”

Learn more about the latest European Innovation Council (EIC) call by visiting this page. Stay up-to-date on the latest company news and advancements in our stroke rehabilitation device by following us on LinkedIn. Don’t miss out on any important updates!

Der Beitrag CorTec GmbH Awarded €2.5 Million Grant by European Innovation Council for Brain Interchange System for Stroke Rehabilitation erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

Movement is our most important means of interacting with our environment. To study the neuronal processes underlying movement, neuroscientists often take the reductionist approach of reducing the behavior under study to a few controllable factors. However, this also limits our ability to understand the natural dynamics of movement. Therefore, there is an effort in neuroscience to study neuronal processes in more natural settings and under free movement conditions. In addition, many scientific instruments for electrophysiology and optogenetic modulation were originally developed for acute experiments and now need to be adapted for chronic, free-motion use.

In his work, Artur Schneider developed several complementary tools to study neuronal processes. Next to the development and characterization of different multifunctional techniques combining electrophysiology and optogenetics, Dr. Schneider elaborated a novel method for virtual head fixation, which is based on the also newly developed tracking system FreiPose. Using these developments, he was able to show that a much larger proportion of neurons in the motor cortex are tuned to anterior limb movements than originally described. This tuning was previously masked by the influence of body posture information.

In his work, he concluded that measuring movements without constraints is an essential step toward understanding the underlying neuronal dynamics. When accurate descriptions of ongoing behavior are incorporated into computer models of neuronal activity, motifs of neuronal population activity related to sensorimotor integration and decision making can be extracted.

The award winner performed his work in the laboratory and under the supervision of Prof. Ilka Diester (https://www.optophysiology.uni-freiburg.de/).

After his PhD on September 30, 2022, Artur Schneider has started a postdoctoral position in Prof. Diester’s lab and is now working on the neuronal basis of flexible behavior in the prefrontal cortex using his new methods. This project is part of the DFG Research Group 5159 entitled “Resolving prefrontal flexibility”.

Save the date

On December 6th we invite you to join us during the Special Bernstein Seminar in which the awardee will present his work and gives deeper insights into his studies.

Make sure to follow us on LinkedIn to not miss out on any updates.

The seminar will take place virtually at 5:15 pm CET. More details on registering for the event can be found here.

Der Beitrag Bernstein-CorTec Award 2022 erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

Make sure to get in contact with us and schedule meetings for the events. We are excited to meet you all on site.

For more details about the shows follow the links below or reach out to us diectly.

Neuroscience 2022 (SfN)

Compamed

BIOMEDevice Silicon Valley

Der Beitrag Trade Show November 2022 erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.

Together with Prof. Mauritz Ortmanns and Stefan Reich from the Institute for Microelectronics at the University of Ulm, Dr. Martin Schüttler and Dr. Jörn Rickert received the second place of the future award. The team succeeded in developing an active implantable brain-computer interface that can convert neuronal information from the human body into control signals for therapeutic applications.

The first place of the 2021 Future Prize, with a prize money of 10,000 euros, was awarded to a team of developers from Marquardt GmbH. Roland Buschle, Rainer Berchtold and Robert Masa have decisively improved and simplified the signal detection of automatic selector levers in motor vehicles by developing a binary logic and a special mechanism for the signal detection of two-dimensional movements.

Learn more about our Brain Interchange Technology.

Der Beitrag CorTec awarded with second place of the 2021 Future Prize erschien zuerst auf CorTec | Thinking ahead – Innovation in Neurotechnology.