Flexible ultrasound-induced retinal stimulating piezo-arrays for biomimetic visual prostheses

Laiming Jiang (), Gengxi Lu, Yushun Zeng, Yizhe Sun, Haochen Kang, James Burford, Chen Gong, Mark S. Humayun, Yong Chen () and Qifa Zhou ()
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Laiming Jiang: University of Southern California
Gengxi Lu: University of Southern California
Yushun Zeng: University of Southern California
Yizhe Sun: University of Southern California
Haochen Kang: University of Southern California
James Burford: University of Southern California
Chen Gong: University of Southern California
Mark S. Humayun: University of Southern California
Yong Chen: University of Southern California
Qifa Zhou: University of Southern California

Nature Communications, 2022, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract Electronic visual prostheses, or biomimetic eyes, have shown the feasibility of restoring functional vision in the blind through electrical pulses to initiate neural responses artificially. However, existing visual prostheses predominantly use wired connections or electromagnetic waves for powering and data telemetry, which raises safety concerns or couples inefficiently to miniaturized implant units. Here, we present a flexible ultrasound-induced retinal stimulating piezo-array that can offer an alternative wireless artificial retinal prosthesis approach for evoking visual percepts in blind individuals. The device integrates a two-dimensional piezo-array with 32-pixel stimulating electrodes in a flexible printed circuit board. Each piezo-element can be ultrasonically and individually activated, thus, spatially reconfigurable electronic patterns can be dynamically applied via programmable ultrasound beamlines. As a proof of concept, we demonstrate the ultrasound-induced pattern reconstruction in ex vivo murine retinal tissue, showing the potential of this approach to restore functional, life-enhancing vision in people living with blindness.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-31599-4

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