Central Representation of Electroacoustic Stimuli. Cochlear implantation, initially only provided to profoundly deaf individuals, is now routine in people with substantial residual hearing. Although stimulation via a cochlear implant and hearing aid in the same ear has been shown to improve speech understanding, particularly in noise, and to increase the aesthetic quality of sound, almost nothing is known about the physiological mechanisms underlying these benefits. The broad aim of our project ....Central Representation of Electroacoustic Stimuli. Cochlear implantation, initially only provided to profoundly deaf individuals, is now routine in people with substantial residual hearing. Although stimulation via a cochlear implant and hearing aid in the same ear has been shown to improve speech understanding, particularly in noise, and to increase the aesthetic quality of sound, almost nothing is known about the physiological mechanisms underlying these benefits. The broad aim of our project is to address this deficiency by measuring the patterns of neural activity evoked by speech sounds across the tonotopic axis in the inferior colliculus and auditory cortex and assess the extent to which the pattern of neural activity allows discrimination between the different speech sounds.Read moreRead less
Neural Activity Shaping for Retinal and Cochlear Implants. This project aims to develop methods to control and optimise the spatial patterns of neural activity evoked by neural prostheses in order to improve the resolution of neuroprostheses. A major problem for neural prostheses is that the electrical current used to stimulate neurons causes a diffuse spread of activity in the neural tissue, which limits the resolution of the device. For patients this translates into limitations in sound qualit ....Neural Activity Shaping for Retinal and Cochlear Implants. This project aims to develop methods to control and optimise the spatial patterns of neural activity evoked by neural prostheses in order to improve the resolution of neuroprostheses. A major problem for neural prostheses is that the electrical current used to stimulate neurons causes a diffuse spread of activity in the neural tissue, which limits the resolution of the device. For patients this translates into limitations in sound quality, in the case of cochlea implants, or visual acuity, for retinal implants. The outcome of the project will be algorithms that optimally choose the currents on each electrode so as to shape neural activity at the finer resolution of electrode spacing rather than the coarser resolution of current spread.Read moreRead less
Ultra-low fouling active surfaces. This project aims to develop chemistries and fabrication approaches through innovative materials evaluation to develop ultra-low fouling active electrode surfaces. Development of ultra-low fouling surfaces will have significant impact in a range of applications where system or device failure is attributed to fouling. The growing field of bionics, where implantable electronic devices interface directly with the nervous system, is one such device. The expected ou ....Ultra-low fouling active surfaces. This project aims to develop chemistries and fabrication approaches through innovative materials evaluation to develop ultra-low fouling active electrode surfaces. Development of ultra-low fouling surfaces will have significant impact in a range of applications where system or device failure is attributed to fouling. The growing field of bionics, where implantable electronic devices interface directly with the nervous system, is one such device. The expected outcomes will be an understanding of the material requirements that lead to the elimination of protein and cell accumulation at surfaces that degrades the performance and lifetime of these implants. The findings will benefit any application where fouling is a problem.Read moreRead less
A novel approach to diffusion MRI for greatly improved imaging of brain white matter and its connectivity. In this project, innovative new imaging and reconstruction techniques will be developed to provide images of brain connectivity, with unprecedented detail. Such images will allow extremely detailed investigations into the white matter connections that allow brain regions to communicate, and improve our understanding of how the brain operates.
The development and testing of a device to enhance the application of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation. This project aims to develop and evaluate a new device designed to substantially enhance the use of transcranial magnetic stimulation, a technology, which is increasingly being applied in the treatment of disorders such as depression, as well as in the study of normal and abnormal brain function.
Optimisation of signal processing and electrical stimulation algorithms for the abatement of epileptic seizures. Epilepsy is the second-most common neurological disorder behind stroke and ischemic attacks, affecting 1-2 per cent of the nation's population. Pharmaceutical therapies are ineffective in approximately one third of cases, the result being a large unmet need for novel treatments. The devices to be produced through this project will improve the quality of life of many patients in the fu ....Optimisation of signal processing and electrical stimulation algorithms for the abatement of epileptic seizures. Epilepsy is the second-most common neurological disorder behind stroke and ischemic attacks, affecting 1-2 per cent of the nation's population. Pharmaceutical therapies are ineffective in approximately one third of cases, the result being a large unmet need for novel treatments. The devices to be produced through this project will improve the quality of life of many patients in the future and alleviate their dependence on traditional medications. The devices will also reduce the patients' requirements for medical practitioners, hospital and ambulance services, and will therefore also reduce the financial burden that neurological and epilepsy patients place on the community.Read moreRead less
Virtual testing of orthopaedic devices as part of the design and development process: strategies to account for patient and surgical variability. Novel computational tools will be developed through this project to help account for patient and surgical variability in the design of orthopaedic implants, such as hip and knee replacements and spinal products. These tools will reduce the design time, give greater insight in implant performance and ultimately lead to safer implants with improved longe ....Virtual testing of orthopaedic devices as part of the design and development process: strategies to account for patient and surgical variability. Novel computational tools will be developed through this project to help account for patient and surgical variability in the design of orthopaedic implants, such as hip and knee replacements and spinal products. These tools will reduce the design time, give greater insight in implant performance and ultimately lead to safer implants with improved longevity.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130100922
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Diamond cybernetics: nanocrystalline diamond for interfacing bionic devices with the human nervous system. Bionic devices will soon be used to treat disorders such as epilepsy, Parkinson's and depression. We will use diamond to create high resolution, permanent electrical connections between devices and the human nervous system. These diamond connections will preserve nerve health and make bionic devices more effective and able to last a lifetime.
Future neural electrodes: probing the electrical activity of nerves using 3D graphene networks. This research aims to develop a totally new type of neural electrode that will for the first time, allow reliable and long-term stimulation and recording. The approach incorporates graphene based biomaterials with tunable electrical and biological properties within supportive three-dimensional cellular microenvironments, greatly enhancing the electrical interactions between cells and the electrode. Th ....Future neural electrodes: probing the electrical activity of nerves using 3D graphene networks. This research aims to develop a totally new type of neural electrode that will for the first time, allow reliable and long-term stimulation and recording. The approach incorporates graphene based biomaterials with tunable electrical and biological properties within supportive three-dimensional cellular microenvironments, greatly enhancing the electrical interactions between cells and the electrode. The electrical properties of nerve cells will be probed using our three-dimensional graphene network, providing insight into the the brain-machine interface. This project is important as it directly addresses the inherent limitations of current electrode designs.Read moreRead less
Tissue-like, nonlinearly elastic nanobiomaterials for soft tissue regeneration. The purpose of this project is to advance the discipline of soft tissue engineering and regeneration with novel biomaterials, nanotechnology and novel clinical treatment concepts. The key outcomes include new elastic tissue-like nanobiomaterials, new varieties of medical implants and innovative treatment methodology.