Epidural combined optical and electrical stimulation induces high-specificity activation of target muscles in spinal cord injured rats.

Autor:	Guo XJ; Beijing Key Laboratory for Biomaterials and Neural Regeneration, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, China., Zhao Z; Department of Orthopedics, The First Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China., Chang JQ; Smart Fluid Equipment and Manufacture Lab, School of Automation Science and Electrical Engineering, Beihang Univeristy, Beijing, China., He LW; Beijing Key Laboratory for Biomaterials and Neural Regeneration, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, China., Su WN; Beijing Key Laboratory for Biomaterials and Neural Regeneration, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, China., Feng T; Beijing Key Laboratory for Biomaterials and Neural Regeneration, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, China., Zhao C; Institute of Rehabilitation Engineering, China Rehabilitation Science Institute, Beijing, China., Xu M; Department of Orthopedics, The First Medical Center of PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China., Rao JS; Beijing Key Laboratory for Biomaterials and Neural Regeneration, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, China.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	Frontiers in neuroscience [Front Neurosci] 2023 Nov 10; Vol. 17, pp. 1282558. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Nov 10 (Print Publication: 2023).
DOI:	10.3389/fnins.2023.1282558
Abstrakt:	Introduction: Epidural electrical stimulation (EES) has been shown to improve motor dysfunction after spinal cord injury (SCI) by activating residual locomotor neural networks. However, the stimulation current often spreads excessively, leading to activation of non-target muscles and reducing the accuracy of stimulation regulation. Objectives: Near-infrared nerve stimulation (nINS) was combined with EES to explore its regulatory effect on lower limb muscle activity in spinal-cord-transected rats. Methods: In this study, stimulation electrodes were implanted into the rats' L3-L6 spinal cord segment with T8 cord transected. Firstly, a series of EES parameters (0.2-0.6 mA and 20-60 Hz) were tested to determine those that specifically regulate the tibialis anterior (TA) and medial gastrocnemius (MG). Subsequently, to determine the effect of combined optical and electrical stimulation, near-infrared laser with a wavelength of 808 nm was used to irradiate the L3-L6 spinal cord segment while EES was performed. The amplitude of electromyography (EMG), the specific activation intensity of the target muscle, and the minimum stimulus current intensity to induce joint movement (motor threshold) under a series of optical stimulation parameters (power: 0.0-2.0 W; pulse width: 0-10 ms) were investigated and analyzed. Results: EES stimulation with 40 Hz at the L3 and L6 spinal cord segments specifically activated TA and MG, respectively. High stimulation intensity (>2 × motor threshold) activated non-target muscles, while low stimulation frequency (<20 Hz) produced intermittent contraction. Compared to electrical stimulation alone (0.577 ± 0.081 mV), the combined stimulation strategy could induce stronger EMG amplitude of MG (1.426 ± 0.365 mV) after spinal cord injury ( p  < 0.01). The combined application of nINS effectively decreased the EES-induced motor threshold of MG (from 0.237 ± 0.001 mA to 0.166 ± 0.028 mA, p  < 0.001). Additionally, the pulse width (PW) of nINS had a slight impact on the regulation of muscle activity. The EMG amplitude of MG only increased by ~70% (from 3.978 ± 0.240 mV to 6.753 ± 0.263 mV) when the PW increased by 10-fold (from 1 to 10 ms). Conclusion: The study demonstrates the feasibility of epidural combined electrical and optical stimulation for highly specific regulation of muscle activity after SCI, and provides a new strategy for improving motor dysfunction caused by SCI. Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. (Copyright © 2023 Guo, Zhao, Chang, He, Su, Feng, Zhao, Xu and Rao.)
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