Graduate student scholarships are now available for attendance at the Ethical Considerations in Research Collaborations Conference Sept. 22 – Sept. 23 at UW Meany Hall. A limited number of scholarships are available and will be awarded first to graduate students who submit an original abstract that represents their field of scholarly work AND is judged to be relevant to the conference objectives.
Center News
Eberhard Fetz and Chet Moritz to contribute expertise to new NSF-funded Engineering Research Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering
Eberhard Fetz, WaNPRC core staff scientist, and Chet Moritz, WaNPRC affiliate scientist, will contribute expertise to a new Engineering Research Center for Sensorimotor Neural Engineering (CSNE) based at the University of Washington (UW). The CSNE, which launches this month in UW Russell Hall, is funded by an $18.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation.
“The center will work on robotic devices that interact with, assist and understand the nervous system,” said director Yoky Matsuoka, a UW associate professor of computer science and engineering. “It will combine advances in robotics, neuroscience, electromechanical devices and computer science to restore or augment the body’s ability for sensation and movement.”
Fetz, a UW professor of physiology and biophysics, and Moritz, a UW professor of rehabilitation medicine, will contribute research on restoring movement to paralyzed limbs using tiny, battery-powered implantable brain-computer interfaces called neurochips. The two researchers and their colleagues have successfully deployed the devices in nonhuman primates.
“The neurochip can be used to bridge lost connections and can also strengthen neural connections by delivering stimulation synchronized with neural activity,” Fetz said. “It operates autonomously during free movements, allowing the adaptive brain to incorporate the artificial recurrent loop into normal behavior and provides ample time to create neural plasticity.”
The neurochip resulted from a productive collaboration between a neuroscientist, Andrew Jackson, and electrical engineering student Jaideep Mavoori. “The new center will provide many new opportunities for such innovative interdepartmental collaborations,” Fetz said.
Partners are the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and San Diego State University. Also partnering are historically minority-serving institutions Spelman College and Morehouse College, both in Atlanta, and Southwestern College in Chula Vista, Calif. International partners are the University of British Columbia and the University of Tokyo.
For more information, read the UW news release.
Kyes’ International Field Study Program strengthens U.S. ties with Indonesia
Randall Kyes ‘ International Field Study Program in Indonesia is one of six U.S. programs to receive funding from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs to increase the number of American students studying in Indonesia.
Eb Fetz and colleagues receive $1 million grant to develop implantable computers
Eb Fetz, WaNPRC core staff scientist, and colleagues for received a $1 million grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation for a project titled “Implantable Computers to Augment Brain Function.”
Fetz is collaborating Professors Jeffrey Ojemann (Neurological Surgery), Brian Otis (Electrical Engineering) and Babak Parviz (Electrical Engineering) on a project to develop and deploy recurrent brain-computer interfaces (R-BCIs). These R-BCIs have numerous clinical applications for bridging damaged biological pathways and for strengthening weak neural connections.
For more information, read the UW news release.
ITHS and WaNPRC sponsor annual $75,000 Ignition Award
The Institute of Translational Health Sciences (ITHS) and the Washington National Primate Research Center (WaNPRC) are pleased to sponsor the Ignition Award for research focusing on the use of nonhuman primate models of human disease. The purpose of the award is to explore innovative areas of nonhuman primate research and generate preliminary data to serve as a basis for submission of new research grant applications and subsequent clinical studies.
The WaNPRC intends to give one or two awards for up to $75,000 each. These funds must be used for WaNPRC costs only, and supplies and salaries must be administered by the WaNPRC. Submit applications to the WaNPRC by Monday, Feb. 14. Awardees will be notified beginning Friday, April 1. Application material, eligibility criteria and additional details are available on the ITHS website. Center staff and scientists with questions are also welcome to e-mail PrimateITHS@wanprc.org for more details.
Researchers develop first implanted device to treat balance disorder
Following a successful surgery on Oct. 21, a patient at the UW Medical Center became the world’s first recipient of a device that aims to quell the disabling vertigo associated with Meniere’s disease. The device being tested — a cochlear implant and processor with re-engineered software and electrode arrays — represents four-plus years of work by Jay T. Rubinstein and James O. Phillips, both of whom are WaNPRC affiliate scientists.
Paul McKellips discusses public opinion on use of animals in research
Paul McKellips, executive vice president for the Foundation for Biomedical Research (FBR), discussed public opinion on the use of animals in research in a presentation Oct. 6 in the University of Washington (UW) Health Sciences Building.
Eb Fetz receives Aspen Brain Forum Prize for innovation in neurotechnology
Eberhard Fetz, WaNPRC core staff scientist, received the first Aspen Brain Forum Prize in Neurotechnology. The prize was awarded to Fetz for “work that has broad application and impact in translating basic research into effective therapeutics within the area of neural prosthetics.”
Nancy Haigwood co-authors paper featured in Nature
Nancy Haigwood, director of the Oregon National Primate Research Center and WaNPRC affiliate scientist, co-authored a paper featured in the Oct. 3 issue of the journal Nature, one of the world’s leading scientific journals. Nancy’s paper is titled “Passive neutralizing antibody controls SHIV viremia and enhances B cell responses in infant macaques.”
Eliza Curnow authors paper featured on cover of Human Reproduction
Eliza Curnow, a research scientist at the Center, authored a paper featured on the cover of the October 2010 issue of the journal Human Reproduction. Curnow and colleagues are exploring an emerging clinical tool to assist sub-fertile couples conceive.