Initially studying the method of taking electricity from the human brain

A type of energy cell transplanted under the skin can take electrical energy from the brain promising to open a new era of biological implant technology. Designed by MIT researchers, cells use glucose in the cerebrospinal fluid around the brain to generate energy of a few hundred microwatt electricity without affecting the normal functioning of the brain. This new technology will someday show us the reliability and effectiveness of the types of devices implanted in the body without the need for an external power source.

Two fuel cells the size of a computer chip are tested in isotonic saline with the same composition as cerebrospinal fluid. This prototype is about a square millimeter in size. They work by oxidizing sugar in the cerebrospinal fluid on the positive electrode surface of platinum, then transferring oxygen into water to the cathode of the cell, where a carbon nanotubes tube is attached. Electrons separate from glucose and are used to generate electricity.

One of the strengths of these fuel cells is that they act as a battery that provides infinite and continuous energy. These cells can operate continuously for decades. Current machines can only operate wirelessly through electric sensors, or use disposable batteries that require surgery to be replaced.

Although not yet tested in humans, many other experiments have demonstrated the safety of this cell. They use glucose at a rate of 2.8 to 28% of the cell's glucose consumption rate, so no side effects can occur. Similarly, the level of oxygen use of this cell is so small that they do not affect the supply of oxygen to the brain. This is the first test of using cerebrospinal fluid as a fuel for transplanted cells, scientists have opened a new promising path.

Rahul Sarpeshkar, MIT professor of electrical and computer engineering, and the head of the research team, said he is ready to test this new technology on animals, and then humans. When the results prove that the cells do not affect the function of organs in the body, we can produce them with ICs in a silicon sheet. Energy from future transplanted cells will be used to combat diseases such as blindness, paralysis and many other brain disorders.

Reference: Gizmag