The key to treating spinal cord disorders lies in information communication technology, says Professor Ozgur Baris Akan from Koç University in Istanbul.
As part of a new research project, Prof. Akan looks at the communication between neurons in the human spinal cord from a telecommunications perspective. The project will mimic the communication behaviour of spinal cords which will ultimately lead to developing next generation treatment for spinal cord disorders.
Starting from the premise that each spinal cord injury is a break in communication in the nervous system, this project will identify communications failures in human nervous nanonetwork and develop adequate technology to address the problem.
Professor Akan says: “If you look at the human nervous system, you realise all incurable motor system injuries are in fact neuron communication related. The few research projects in this area have been initiated by professors in the life sciences area when, in fact, to understand the cause of these conditions, they need to be inspected from a telecommunications perspective.”
Prof. Akan received a two million EUR grant to develop next generation treatment for spinal cord diseases which are currently incurable. For this project he is collaborating with the University of Cambridge’s neuroscience department.
Kaynak : 