Needle-thin brain implant records, stimulates and delivers drugs at once

Researchers from DTU, the University of Copenhagen and UCL have developed the microfluidic Axialtrode (mAxialtrode), a flexible implant under 0.5 mm wide with eight microchannels and a light-conducting core. In mice it simultaneously recorded neural activity, delivered light stimulation and injected drugs at different brain depths; the team is now patenting the technology.

• Implant is under 0.5 mm across with eight microfluidic channels
• Blue and red light stimulation with recordings from cortex and hippocampus
• Drug delivery points spaced almost 3 mm apart along the fiber
• Still a research tool; patenting and clinical testing lie ahead