Summary: A recent review provides a less invasive alternative to the current ocular prostheses by reversing the vision in mice with macular degeneration. These nanoparticles, which are activated by shaped ultraviolet light, bypass damaged photoreceptors and stimulate ocular cells.
This stimulation is confirmed by action in the visual cortex, which results in the transmission of visual signals to the brain. Researchers hope to rebuild human perception by combining these nanoparticles with laser-equipped goggles in a future gadget.
Important Information:
- Using ultraviolet light, gold nanoparticles promote depressive and ganglion cells.
- Nanoparticle shipping uses plain eye injections, in contrast to cell implants.
- Restored Physical Indicators: Brain imaging demonstrated visual brain activation in mice following treatment.
Origin: Brown University
Researchers at Brown University recently concluded that people with macular degeneration and other ocular problems may one day be able to recover their perspective using metal particles, which are microscopic bits of ore thousands of times thinner than a human hair.  ,
The study team’s findings were supported by the National Institutes of Health and published in the journals a , research  , and a .
The findings point to a novel type of visual implant system that uses nanoparticles in combination with a small laser system worn in a pair of glasses or sunglasses as a potential treatment for retinal problems.  ,
According to Jiarui Nie, a postdoctoral researcher at the National Institutes of Health who led the research while earning her Ph. D.,” This is a new type of retinal surgery that has the potential to restore vision lost to retinal degeneration without any kind of complicated surgeries or genetic modification.” at Brown, D.
We think that this approach has the potential to change the way we treat chronic and retinal conditions.
Nie was employed by Jonghwan Lee, an associate teacher at Brown’s School of Engineering and a university online at Brown’s Carney Institute for Brain Science, who oversaw the project and was the study’s top writer.  ,
Millions of people in the United States and around the globe are affected by ocular diseases like macular degradation and lesion tissue. These conditions cause damage to light-sensitive retinal cells known as cells, which are the “rods” and” rings” that transform light into tiny electric pulse.
Other types of cells, known as manic and nerve cells, that method photoreceptor signals and carry them further up the visual string, are stimulated by those pulses.  ,
To pass damaged photoreceptors, nanoparticles are injected directly into the eye in this new method. In much the same manner that receptor pulses do, ultraviolet light is focused on the nanoparticles, which produce a small amount of heat that triggers bipolar and nerve cells.
The approach has the ability to recover lost vision because conditions like macular degeneration mainly affect photoreceptors while leaving intact bipolar and ganglion cells.  ,
The research group tested the particle approach in both living and dead ocular mice in this recent study. The researchers projected designs onto the retinas using pattern-patterned near-infrared light light after injecting a wet particle solution.
The group verified that the nanoparticles were interesting bipolar and nerve cells in patterns , which matched the shapes projected by the laser, by using a calcium sign to detect biological activity.
According to the experiments, neither the particle solution nor the light stimulation produced visible adverse effects, as indicated by biochemical markers for swelling and toxicity.
The researchers used satellites to demonstrate that the brain’s previously unreachable visual indicators were being transmitted and processed by light activation of the nanoparticles in the mice’s physical cortices.
According to the researchers, that is a sign that vision has at least been partially restored, which is a promising sign for the potential application of technology to humans.  ,
The researchers envision a system that uses nanoparticles and a laser system mounted on glasses or goggles for human use.
The outside world’s camera would use the image data to drive the patterning of an infrared laser. Then, the laser pulses would enable people to see through the nanoparticles in their retinas.  ,
The method is comparable to the one that the Food and Drug Administration gave human use approval a few years ago. A small electrode array was surgically implanted into the eye in contrast to the older approach, which included a camera system and an older approach. Nie claims that the nanoparticle approach has a number of significant benefits.
It’s notably less invasive than it is. ” One of the simplest procedures in ophthalmology is an intravitreal injection,” Nie said in contrast to surgery.  ,
There are also practical benefits. The size of the electrode array, which measures about 60 square pixels, was a constraint on the resolution of the previous approach.
The new approach has the potential to cover everyone’s entire field of vision because the nanoparticle solution covers the entire retina. The system doesn’t necessarily interfere with any residual vision a person may retain because the nanoparticles react with near-infrared light as opposed to visible light.  ,  ,
According to Nie, more research must be done before the approach can be tested in a clinical setting, but this early research suggests it’s possible.
Nie praised the study,” We demonstrated that the nanoparticles can stay in the retina for months without significant toxicity.”
And we demonstrated that they can effectively stimulate the visual system. That is very encouraging for upcoming applications.
The National Eye Institute ( R01EY030569 ), the China Scholarship Council ( R01EY030569 ), the Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission Scholarship ( Saudi Arabia ), and South Korea’s Alchemist Project Program ( RS-2024-00422269 ) provided funding for the study. Additionally, Professor Kyungsik Eom from Pusan National University, Brown Professor Tao Lui, and Brown students Hafithe M. Al Ghosain, Alexander Neifert, Aaron Cherian, Gaia Marie Gerbaka, and Kristine Y. Ma. are co-authors.
About this research in visual neuroscience and AMD.
Author: Kevin Stacey
Source: Brown University
Contact: Kevin Stacey – Brown University
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original research has been made private.
Jiarui Nie and colleagues ‘” Bipolar Cells are activated by intravenously injected plasmonic nanorods through Patterned Near-Infrared Laser Projection.” is a paper that uses patterned near-infrared laser projection. ACS Nano
Abstract
Bipolar Cells are activated by intravenously injected plasmonic nanorods through Patterned Near-Infrared Laser Projection.
Retinal prostheses are intended to restore vision in people who have degenerative conditions, such as retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration.
Traditional techniques, such as optogenetics and implantable electrode arrays, frequently call for invasive surgery or genetic modification and are constrained by spatial resolution and visual field size.
Some of the emerging nanoparticle-based techniques rely on intense visible light, which may impair the ability to retain vision, despite their comparatively minimal invasiveness.
Near-infrared ( NIR ) light is a promising alternative that can be induced by plasmonic gold nanorods ( AuNRs ), which can be used to induce photothermal neuromodulation without compromising the remaining sight.
However, it is still unclear how to effectively use photothermal stimulation with patterned laser projection for precise neural activation.
In this study, we use intravitreally injected, anti-Thy1 antibody-conjugated AuNRs to primarily activate bipolar cells, a goal that has traditionally been accomplished through more in-depth subretinal injections.
This method uses patterned NIR stimulation to restore high-resolution visual clarity and allows for extensive retinal coverage.
A scanning NIR laser beam projected in a square pattern with a 20-m spot repeatedly, and specifically by stimulating bipolar cells with temperature-sensitive ion channels, consistently triggered highly localized neuronal activation.
In vitro, this patterned stimulation caused the visual cortex of both wild-type and fully blind mouse models without causing systemic toxicity or significant retinal damage.
Our creative approach offers a precise, customizable, and less invasive method to restore vision, promising significant advancements in spatial resolution and broad applicability.
