A team of researchers are currently working on a project to build Deep Brain Stimulation electrodes for treating Parkinson’s disease and different addictions, the head of Cellular and Molecular Research Center at the Tehran University of Medical Sciences said.
Mohammad Taqi Joghataei, the project manager, also told Mehr News Agency that his team is working on a procedure to study a variety of disabling neurological symptoms—most commonly the debilitating symptoms of Parkinson’s disease and addiction in which the base of the brain is altered.
Joghataei noted that the DBS project has three phases, namely tests on mice, monkeys and finally humans, adding that in the first phase, a team of engineers at the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering of University of Tehran began building electrodes that cause brain stimulation.
“Currently, these electrodes, which are used in brain surgeries, have been tested on small animals such as mice and bigger animals such as monkeys,” he said.
The project manager further said the project was launched two years ago and the third phase includes testing the electrodes on humans.
“Last year, the experiment on mice was conducted successfully. We began testing on monkeys in March and if the results are reported as successful, we will conclude that the test will also work on humans,” he said.
Joghataei maintained that the electrode used on the monkeys is of the same kind that will be tested on humans.
