Seeking the Hows and Whys of MW Neuromodulation
by A.J. Kleber
“We are not cooking the brain,” Professor Ji-Xin Cheng (ECE, BME) commented with some humor in reference to prior collaborative research into microwave neuromodulation. However, the fact remains that the bioeffects of microwaves on human neurons, while hypothesized to be non-thermal in nature, are not well understood; especially not in the context of acute or long-term exposure. A new $3M study, funded by the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Army Research Laboratory (DEVCOM ARL), seeks to delve deeply into the mechanisms behind these effects.
Led by Professor Chen Yang (ECE, Chemistry, MSE), this collaborative, multidisciplinary effort will leverage the product of previous research: millimeter-scale resonators designed to amplify local microwave fields tenfold and precisely manipulate cellular processes in the brain, which she describes as a “unique toolkit” for studying neural bioeffects up close. These pioneering devices were developed for localized neural inhibition to treat epilepsy and chronic pain, and can be implanted with minimal invasiveness. Their effects have been demonstrated both in vitro and in vivo.
Taking a truly convergent approach, Yang and her collaborators, including BU Professors Ji-Xin Cheng, Qiang Cui (Chemistry) and Michael Economo (BME), will pool varied expertise in engineering, neuroscience and biophysics to study these still-mysterious processes at the molecular, cellular, and tissue/organ level. The comprehensive understanding the team hopes to achieve could have a transformative effect on neurological therapies (such as drug-free pain management) and on military applications. Microwave frequencies are already widely used in military settings.
Professor Chen Yang is an expert in materials and devices for non-genetic neuromodulation, with a broader interest in the use of light and sound to regulate nerve activity. She is a Fellow of AIMBE, a member of the ACS, MRS & SPIE, the recipient of an NSF Career Award (2009) and an NIH Trailblazer Award (2024). Her promising work on a novel retinal prosthesis to treat age-related macular degeneration was recently published in Nature Communications.