The embargo on this release has changed since it was originally posted. DURHAM, N.C. -- Researchers at Duke University Medical Center have taught rhesus monkeys to consciously control the movement of a robot arm in real time, using only signals from their brains and visual feedback on a video screen. The scientists said that the animals appeared to operate the robot arm as if it were their own limb.

The scientists and engineers said their achievement represents an important step toward technology that could enable paralyzed people to control "neuroprosthetic" limbs, and even free-roaming "neurorobots" using brain signals.

Importantly, said the neurobiologists, the technology they developed for analyzing brain signals from behaving animals could also greatly improve rehabilitation of people with brain and spinal cord damage from stroke, disease or trauma. By understanding the biological factors that control the brain's adaptability, they said, clinicians could develop improved drugs and rehabilitation methods for people with such damage.

The advance was reported in an article published online Oct. 13, 2003, in the Public Library of Science (PLoS) , by neurobiologists led by Miguel Nicolelis, M.D., who is professor of neurobiology and co-director of the Duke Center for Neuroengineering. Lead author of the paper was Jose Carmena, Ph.D., in the Nicolelis laboratory. Besides Nicolelis, the other senior co-author is Craig Henriquez, Ph.D., associate professor of biomedical engineering in the Pratt School of Engineering, who is also the other center co-director. The research was funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the James S. McDonnell Foundation.

Nicolelis cited numerous researchers at other institutions whose work has been central to the field of brain-machine interfaces and in understanding the brain -- and whose insights helped lead to the latest achievement. They include
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Contact: Dennis Meredith
dennis.meredith@duke.edu
919-681-8054
Duke University Medical Center
13-Oct-2003

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