Brain implantation of soft bioelectronics via embryonic development
Abstract
Developing bioelectronics capable of stably tracking brain-wide, single-cell, millisecond-resolved neural activity in the developing brain is critical for advancing neuroscience and understanding neurodevelopmental disorders. During development, the three-dimensional structure of the vertebrate brain arises from a two-dimensional neural plate1,2. These large morphological changes have previously posed a challenge for implantable bioelectronics to reliably track neural activity throughout brain development3-9. Here we introduce a tissue-level-soft, submicrometre-thick mesh microelectrode array that integrates into the embryonic neural plate by leveraging the tissue's natural two-dimensional-to-three-dimensional reconfiguration. As organogenesis progresses, the mesh deforms, stretches and distributes throughout the brain, seamlessly integrating with neural tissue. Immunostaining, gene expression analysis and behavioural testing confirm no adverse effects on brain development or function. This embedded electrode array enables long-term, stable mapping of how single-neuron activity and population dynamics emerge and evolve during brain development. In axolotl models, it not only records neural electrical activity during regeneration but also modulates the process through electrical stimulation.
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