Dermal Sensory Regenerative Peripheral Nerve Interface for Reestablishing Sensory Nerve Feedback in Peripheral Afferents in the Rat. Issue 5 (20th December 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Sando, Ian C.; Adidharma, Widya; Nedic, Andrej; Ursu, Daniel C.; Mays, Elizabeth A.; Hu, Yaxi; Kubiak, Carrie A.; Sugg, Kristoffer B.; Kung, Theodore A.; Cederna, Paul S.; Gerling, Gregory J.; Kemp, Stephen W. P.; Urbanchek, Melanie G.
• Is Part Of: Plastic and reconstructive surgery. Volume 151:Issue 5(2023)
• Page Start: 804e
• Page End: 813e
• Publication Date: 2022-12-20
• Subjects: Surgery, Plastic -- Periodicals; 617.95205
• DOI: 10.1097/PRS.0000000000010086
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0032-1052

Abstract

Abstract : Background: Without meaningful, intuitive sensory feedback, even the most advanced myoelectric devices require significant cognitive demand to control. The dermal sensory regenerative peripheral nerve interface (DS-RPNI) is a biological interface designed to establish high-fidelity sensory feedback from prosthetic limbs. Methods: DS-RPNIs were constructed in rats by securing fascicles of residual sensory peripheral nerves into autologous dermal grafts, with the objectives of confirming regeneration of sensory afferents within DS-RPNIs and establishing the reliability of afferent neural response generation with either mechanical or electrical stimulation. Results: Two months after implantation, DS-RPNIs were healthy and displayed well-vascularized dermis with organized axonal collaterals throughout and no evidence of neuroma. Electrophysiologic signals were recorded proximal from DS-RPNI's sural nerve in response to both mechanical and electrical stimuli and compared with (1) full-thickness skin, (2) deepithelialized skin, and (3) transected sural nerves without DS-RPNI. Mechanical indentation of DS-RPNIs evoked compound sensory nerve action potentials (CSNAPs) that were like those evoked during indentation of full-thickness skin. CSNAP firing rates and waveform amplitudes increased in a graded fashion with increased mechanical indentation. Electrical stimuli delivered to DS-RPNIs reliably elicited CSNAPs at low current thresholds, and CSNAPs gradually increased in amplitude with increasing stimulation current. Conclusions: These findings suggest that afferent nerve fibers successfully reinnervate DS-RPNIs, and that graded stimuli applied to DS-RPNIs produce proximal sensory afferent responses similar to those evoked from normal skin. This confirmation of graded afferent signal transduction through DS-RPNI neural interfaces validate DS-RPNI's potential role of facilitating sensation in human-machine interfacing. Clinical Relevance Statement: The DS-RPNI is a novel biotic-abiotic neural interface that allows for transduction of sensory stimuli into neural signals. It is expected to advance the restoration of natural sensation and development of sensorimotor control in prosthetics.