Artificial neural connections ‘can restore paralysed limb functions’

Scientists have developed a new type of artificial neural connection technology that can restore limb functionality among paralysed patients.

A team from Japan's National Institute for Physiological Sciences and the University of Washington in the US has investigated the effects of introducing the novel neural connection to repair a spinal cord lesion in a paretic monkey.

Using this system, the researchers were able to restore neural pathway communications between the brain and spinal cord, allowing the subject to once again control its hand using its brain patterns.

This technology could act as a new treatment option for patients affected by spinal cord injuries or strokes.

Yukio Nishimura, associate professor of the National Institute for Physiological Sciences, said: "This might even have a better chance of becoming a real prosthetic treatment rather than the sort of robotic devices that have been developed recently."

According to NHS data, the most common causes of paralysis in the UK are stroke, head injury, spine damage and multiple sclerosis.