Clients in the News: Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems
08/23/2005
By Ross Kerber, Boston Globe Staff | August 23, 2005
A Foxborough company is looking for patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis to test a futuristic computer chip by having it implanted into their brains.
Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems Inc. yesterday said it hopes to recruit patients with the condition, ALS -- commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease -- or similar motor neuron diseases to try BrainGate, a tiny sensor that converts brain-cell impulses to computer signals. The sensor might someday allow patients to control wheelchairs, computer keyboards, and other devices by merely thinking about the movement.
In a clinical trial begun last year, doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital implanted chips in two patients with spinal cord injuries. Results from only one of the cases has been reported, and they were promising.
More than 150 people expressed interest in participating in the trial, but some had ALS, which ruled them out of the study design, said Cyberkinetics chief executive Timothy R. Surgenor. That prompted the company and the hospital to create the second trial, which they said yesterday has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.
Treating ALS also might have more commercial potential for the company, Surgenor said. About 30,000 Americans suffer from the degenerative disease, which has no cure. Many fear that they will eventually lose the ability to communicate through speech, nodding, or even eye movement. Study designers hope the chip will allow some ALS patients to ''type" by moving a computer cursor across an on-screen keyboard.
Jamie Heywood, president of the Cambridge-based advocacy group ALS Therapy Development Foundation, which encouraged Cyberkinetics to launch the second trial, said the company will not have difficulty finding volunteers.
''I have 20 good friends who would install this tomorrow if it were available," said Heywood, who hopes to enroll his brother, an ALS patient, in the trial.
The Cyberkinetics system, and a similar technology from Neural Signals Inc. of Atlanta, are among a growing number of technologies that combine human tissue with manufactured material to restore functions lost to injury or disease.
Medical-device giants are investing heavily in the area as well. Last year, Boston Scientific Corp. of Natick spent $740 million to buy Advanced Bionics Corp. of California, which makes implantable hearing aids that connect to the auditory nerve, and electrical devices that stimulate the spine to counter pain.
At the other end of the spectrum are much smaller companies like Liberating Technologies Inc. of Holliston. Already known as a maker of artificial limbs, the company recently collaborated with the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and Northwestern University to create a pair of prosthetic arms for an amputee, Tennessee electrical company worker Jesse Sullivan.
The Rehabilitation Institute also recently began seeking patients for BrainGate.
Patients with ALS present similar challenges as spinal injuries, since the disease damages the motor neurons connecting muscles to the spinal chord. It is possible they won't respond to the Cyberkinetics system, because it is not completely clear how the disease affects the motor cortex areas of their brains, where the sensors pick up signals.
If just a few ALS patients show promise with the system it will help Cyberkinetics build its case to the FDA to start a larger clinical trial, said Leigh Hochberg, a Massachusetts General neurologist.
Surgenor said Cyberkinetics has spent $13 million of the $15 million it has raised, and needs to raise more by the end of the year in addition to the $3 million in grant money and product revenue it has reported so far. Shares in Cyberkinetics rose 9 cents to close at $1.55 in Nasdaq over-the-counter trading yesterday.
Ross Kerber can be reached at kerber@globe.com.
© Copyright 2005 Globe Newspaper Company.
Reposted From: www.Boston.com
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