While monitoring your heart rate and VO2 max with the latest fitness tracker is impressive, researchers are pioneering new, minuscule technology capable of tracking the real-time status of nearly any organ, nerve, or muscle. In an awe-inspiring leap towards a futuristic-cyborg reality, this innovation, aptly named “neural dust,” holds the potential to stimulate nerves and muscles, introducing a groundbreaking era of “electroceutical” treatments for conditions like epilepsy and inflammation.

Engineers at the University of California, Berkeley, have engineered sensors scarcely larger than a large grain of sand. These sensors harness ultrasound technology to both power the implant and transmit data. Successfully implanted in the muscles and nerves of rats, neural dust is poised for further development, with the researchers aspiring to create even smaller sensors applicable within the brain.

Michel Maharbiz, an electrical engineering professor and co-author of a paper published in the journal Neuron, envisions a broad range of applications for neural dust beyond nerves and the brain. He stated, “I think the long-term prospects for neural dust are not only within nerves and the brain, but much broader. Having access to in-body telemetry has never been possible because there has been no way to put something super-tiny super-deep. But now I can take a speck of nothing and park it next to a nerve or organ, your [gastrointestinal] tract or a muscle, and read out the data.”

The team is diligently working to construct tiny sensors crafted from materials compatible with the human body, designed to maintain functionality for a decade or more without degradation.

Berkeley professor, neuroscientist, and co-author Jose Carmena emphasized the versatility of this innovation, especially in the peripheral nervous system, envisioning applications for bladder control or appetite suppression. While achieving the ideal 50-micron size required for the brain and central nervous system remains a technological challenge, once clinically validated, neural dust is anticipated to replace conventional wire electrodes, simplifying surgical procedures and enhancing patient outcomes.

By Impact Lab