Functional robot brain implant successfully trialled using rodent

A breakthrough study from Tel Aviv University has successfully inserted a robotic brain implant into an animal test model for the first time.

Utilising technology that is commonly used in the development of robotic limbs, researchers have been able to create an artificial cerebellum that has been placed into the skull of a rodent with brain damage.

This device was able to restore the animal's capacity for movement by receiving, interpreting and transmitting sensory information from the brain stem to the body in a way that mimics natural neuronal activity.

It is hoped that this development could lead to the creation of electronic implants to replace damaged tissues in the human brain.

Professor Matti Mintz of Tel Aviv University's department of psychology said: "It's a proof of the concept that we can record information from the brain, analyze it in a way similar to the biological network and then return it to the brain."

This comes after the university published research last month showing how stem cells taken from bone marrow could be used to protect the brain from conditions such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.