The brain thinks, the spinal cord implements - #Neuroscience Even after complete spinal paralysis, the human spinal cord is able to trigger activity in the leg muscles using electrical pulses from an implanted stimulator. This has already been demonstrated in earlier studies conducted in Vienna. Now, as part of a joint international project, a team of young researchers at the Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering at MedUni Vienna has succeeded in identifying the mechanisms the spinal cord uses to control this muscle activity. These mechanisms still work even if the neural pathways from the brain are physically interrupted as the result of a spinal cord injury. This is the first time throughout the world that the spinal-cord activation patterns for walking have been decoded. - Read more: bioengineer.org/?p=5678
Posted on: Sat, 17 Jan 2015 06:50:16 +0000