Department of Finemechanics, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, 6-6-01 Aramaki Aoba, Aoba-ku, Sendai, 980-8579, Japan.
Department of Neurosurgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Tohoku University, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, 980-8575, Japan.
Adv Healthc Mater. 2022 Dec;11(23):e2201627. doi: 10.1002/adhm.202201627. Epub 2022 Oct 5.
An intrinsically soft organic electrode consisting of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-modified polyurethane (PEDOT-PU) is embedded into a bilayer film of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogels for developing a self-closing cuff electrode for neuromodulation. The curled form of the PVA hydrogel is prepared by releasing internal stress in the bilayer structure. The inner diameter of the cuff electrode is set to less than 2 mm for immobilization to the vagus nerve (VN) of humans and pigs. The stability of the immobilization is examined, while the pressure applied to a nerve bundle is at a harmless level (≈200 Pa). Since the electrode is totally organic, MRI measurements can be conducted without image artifacts. The large electric capacitance of the PEDOT-PU (≈27 mF cm ) ensures a safe stimulation of living tissues without Faradaic reactions. The practical performance of the cuff electrode for VN stimulation is demonstrated by observation of bradycardia induction in a pig.
一种由聚（3,4-亚乙基二氧噻吩）修饰的聚氨酯（PEDOT-PU）组成的本征软有机电极被嵌入到聚乙烯醇（PVA）水凝胶的双层薄膜中，用于开发用于神经调节的自关闭袖带电极。PVA 水凝胶的卷曲形式是通过释放双层结构中的内应力制备的。袖带电极的内径设置为小于 2mm，以固定在人和猪的迷走神经（VN）上。检查了固定的稳定性，同时作用于神经束的压力处于无害水平（≈200Pa）。由于电极完全是有机的，因此可以进行 MRI 测量而不会产生图像伪影。PEDOT-PU 的大电容（≈27 mF cm ）确保了对活组织的安全刺激而没有法拉第反应。通过观察猪的心动过缓诱导，证明了 VN 刺激用袖带电极的实际性能。
