Researchers Develop Hydrogel-Based Electrodes For Brain Implants (phys.org) 32
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Phys.Org: Hydrogels are physical and chemical polymer networks capable of retaining large quantities of liquid in aqueous conditions without losing their dimensional stability. They are used in a whole host of applications, and in combination with other components and they acquire specific properties such as electrical conductivity. The Materials + Technology research group in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Environment of the UPV/EHU's Faculty of Engineering selected a biopolymer that had not previously been used for applications of this type: starch. They created the hydrogel for use in neural interfaces. "Due to the fact that electrodes of neural interfaces made of platinum or gold are rigid, they require conductive polymer coatings to bring their flexibility closer to that of neural tissue. Right now, however, smaller devices are required that offer better mechanical, electrical and biological properties," explained the researcher.
The hydrogels "address these demands very well." To provide the hydrogel with electrical conductivity, they used graphene. "It provides electrical properties that are highly suited to the hydrogel, but this also has a drawback: It is not easily stabilized in water. We used extracts of salvia to overcome this obstacle and to render the graphene stable in an aqueous medium. These extracts also make the hydrogel even more suitable, if that is possible, for use in medicine as it also has antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties." The researchers used "click chemistry" to produce the hydrogel. "Unlike other means of synthesis, click chemistry does not tend to use catalysts in the reactions; in addition, no by-products are generated and they are high-performance reactions."
The hydrogels "address these demands very well." To provide the hydrogel with electrical conductivity, they used graphene. "It provides electrical properties that are highly suited to the hydrogel, but this also has a drawback: It is not easily stabilized in water. We used extracts of salvia to overcome this obstacle and to render the graphene stable in an aqueous medium. These extracts also make the hydrogel even more suitable, if that is possible, for use in medicine as it also has antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties." The researchers used "click chemistry" to produce the hydrogel. "Unlike other means of synthesis, click chemistry does not tend to use catalysts in the reactions; in addition, no by-products are generated and they are high-performance reactions."
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Wow (Score:5, Funny)
”The Materials + Technology research group in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Environment of the UPV/EHU's Faculty of Engineering”
Well, that’s a name that just rolls off the tongue...
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Comment removed (Score:4, Funny)
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Forever limited by the confines of our skulls, our brains will never achieve their true cognitive potential.
Single-celled organisms opened up their membranes in order to form cell colonies, and thereby achieved a fundamentally higher state of being. Now, we repeat the process, opening up our skulls and creating cognitive colonies of human brains, capable of thinking thoughts of such depth and complexity as has never been seen before by any form of life on this planet.
Don't fear the future. This is how we
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Apologies, mister cyborg collective. We don't transcend our human limitations by remaining as wetware.
The limitations of your biology is exactly that; your biochemical processes are slow, they produce waste, and your soft parts are easily squishable by even a moderate change in delta-v. In other words, you still stink, hardly any improvement over mere animals.
We will create machines that will be intellectually superior to ourselves. Then we will be replaced, as is the proper order of nature.
Resistance
Kind of curious how durable this is (Score:2)
Starch and Spit don't sound like they can last very long. Really hate to have that in your head when it dissolves away and your implant starts short circuiting or worse.
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"Salvia" is not "saliva."
Not remotely.
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Starch and Spit don't sound like they can last very long. Really hate to have that in your head when it dissolves away and your implant starts short circuiting or worse.
Thanks for catching that; I'll call the researchers immediately!
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You don't care about how durable this is ?
Well I guess you don't have to worry about failing brain implants doing you damage.
A suggestion for alternative use (Score:2, Interesting)
Could this material be used as the basis for contact lenses?
I am thinking of corrective vision, plus electronics for display or VR interfaces.
I really don't want to be one the ,0 or 1,0 test subjects for brain implants. I'd also like a lifetime (mine) guarantee for support and maintenance on brain implants.
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Dimensional stabilizers! (Score:4, Interesting)
Very Whovian.
Anyways, there has been a lot of interest in electrodes close to the brain. You can get much more sensitive, much more accurate, EEG if the electrodes are on the inside of the skull. Of course, MEG may make that redundant.
Brain-Computer Interfaces are an emerging technology but apparently the brain reacts to electrodes. No surprises there, we've known for decades that protein knots are formed around metal contamination in the brain. I'm interested in whether these hydrogels will reduce that problem.
Coming soon to a starship near you (Score:1)
But . . . (Score:1)