INBRAIN's graphene BCI advances in Parkinson's care

INBRAIN Neuroelectronics is advancing the use of graphene in neural interfaces, aiming to decode and modulate neural activity for therapeutic purposes. The Barcelona-based startup, founded as a spinout from the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, recently completed its first human study and has partnerships with Microsoft and Mayo Clinic. Parkinson’s disease is the initial focus for testing this technology.

Carolina Aguilar, co-founder and CEO of INBRAIN, leads the company with experience from Medtronic in deep brain stimulation. INBRAIN's work builds on European research efforts following the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics for graphene. The EU's €1 billion Graphene Flagship, launched in 2013, supported the development of graphene for neural interfaces by INBRAIN's scientific founders José A. Garrido, Kostas Kostarelos, and Antón Guimerà.

INBRAIN has developed graphene electrodes that range from 25 to 800 micrometers, capable of maintaining high signal-to-noise ratios even at miniature scales. This miniaturization allows for high-resolution neural recording and stimulation, potentially identifying disease-related biomarkers in the kilohertz range. Aguilar emphasizes the importance of accessing detailed neural signals to link them to specific symptoms and therapeutic responses.

The electrodes also enable precise stimulation, injecting significant charge through small surface areas. Preclinical studies have shown selective stimulation capabilities. Aguilar notes the bidirectional nature of the technology, aiming for therapeutic applications from the outset.

Parkinson’s disease serves as the first major application of INBRAIN's technology. The company seeks to use high-resolution decoding to identify and modulate disease-related neural activity, with plans to expand into stroke rehabilitation and epilepsy. A collaboration with Microsoft aims to integrate INBRAIN's platform with Azure AI to transform neural data into clinically relevant information.

In a demonstration, a Parkinson’s patient interacts with an AI assistant, with the system interpreting neural data to adjust stimulation parameters. Clinicians maintain oversight of any changes, ensuring patient safety. INBRAIN is preparing further studies to expand its data sets and refine its AI models for scalable automation.

The first human study, conducted in Manchester, involved ten patients during brain tumor surgeries. The graphene interface was temporarily placed on the cortical surface to assess safety and compatibility with neurosurgical workflows. The study achieved its primary safety outcome and demonstrated superior decoding accuracy compared to metal technology.

INBRAIN is developing a semi-chronic cortical interface for brain mapping and neural decoding as its first commercial product. This interface will generate additional data to refine AI models and support the development of a chronic platform for therapeutic use. The partnership with Mayo Clinic provides a clinical benchmark for testing INBRAIN's hardware and workflows.

Looking ahead, INBRAIN envisions its platform extending beyond Parkinson’s to broader applications across the central and peripheral nervous systems. Aguilar highlights the goal of decoding neural signals to improve patient outcomes and ultimately teach the neural system to self-repair.