Breakthrough in Human Cortical Neuroscience: First Large-Scale Single-Neuron Recording Using Ultra-Flexible uFINE Electrode Arrays
StairMed
Developer of Implantable Brain-Computer Interface Technology
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RecentlyDate, StairMed developedUltra-Flexible Implantable Neural Electrode Arrays (uFINE Electrode Arrays)A Major Breakthrough in Single-Neuron Recording During Human Surgery! Related research findings have been published on the preprint platform bioRxiv (DOI:https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.04.14.648657). This item is related toXijing Hospital,Huashan HospitalThe research not only achieved high-density, high-stability single-neuron recording but also provided a new tool for brain-machine interfaces (BMI) and clinical research, offering a brand-new technological platform for neuroscience research at the single-neuron scale of the human brain.
The uFINE electrode array, with its excellent biocompatibility and minimal tissue damage, has become a powerful solution to address these challenges. Previous reports have shown that this electrode has successfully achieved large-scale, long-term stable single-neuron recordings in rodents and non-human primates. This article develops a method utilizing the uFINE electrode array for...A Platform for Recording Single-Neuron Activity Across the Cortex During Human SurgeryThe ultra-flexibility of the uFINE electrode array enables stable, high-quality recordings even during rapid brain pulsations, thereby achieving a high yield of single-neuron signals. Through this approach,Heterogeneous responses of neurons in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) to stimulus and response phases were observed.These results indicate that uFINE is expected to become a powerful tool for researching human brain science and medicine at the clinical end.
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The uFINE electrode system (Fig. 1B) used intraoperatively is specifically designed to adapt to various neurosurgical scenarios (Fig. 1C), enabling dense sampling of deep neural activity in the human cerebral cortex at single-cell resolution. The uFINE electrode array features micron-scale dimensions (Fig. 1E), ultra-high flexibility (Fig. 1F), and mechanical strength (Fig. 1G), making it highly suitable for intraoperative use. Its high tensile strength (a single electrode wire can bear a 10g weight) is crucial for reducing the risk of breakage during implantation and ensuring patient safety. In this article, the uFINE electrode arrayA total of 616 single neurons were collected from 10 patients, with up to 135 neurons collected from a single patient.(Figure 2D).
Figure 1. Intraoperative Characteristics of uFINE Electrode
Figure 2. Intraoperative Signal Quality of uFINE Electrode
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uFINE Electrode ArrayUltra-flexibility, Ultra-micro Structure, and High BiocompatibilityEffectively overcoming the limitation of rigid electrodes, which are susceptible to signal drift caused by brain pulsation during intraoperative recording, resulting in the loss of spike signals. When brain tissue pulsates due to cardiopulmonary cycles, the recording site can move along with the brain tissue, significantly reducing relative displacement between the electrode and tissue (Figure 1D). Key data shows: ① The standard deviation of position fluctuations for neurons with an average amplitude greater than 70μV (n=112) is only 18.88±7.69μm (Figure 3A-B); ② 61% of single neurons (n=616) showed displacement less than half the inter-site distance, i.e., 32.5μm, from their nearest neighboring site throughout the recording period (Figure 3C). Effective suppression of relative displacement between the electrode and brain tissue not only helps maintain neuronal viability but also provides a foundation for stable, non-damaging long-term neural electrical activity acquisition (waveform similarity maintained within 36.5 minutes, Figure 3D). Among 10 patients, a total of 511 neurons (78.3%, Figure 3E) continuously fired (firing rate > 0.1 Hz) and were stably recorded by individual channels without signal drift throughout the recording period. Further validation through principal component analysis showed that the waveform distribution of individual neurons remained highly concentrated in the low-dimensional feature space, without drift or periodic fluctuation over the time axis (Figure 3F), confirming the dual stability of this system during rapid brain pulsation and long-duration recording.
Figure 3. uFINE electrode signals exhibit excellent single-neuron signal stability.
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uFINE achieves a higher yield of single-channel neuronal signals, enabling reliable data acquisition with fewer channels. Meanwhile, the uFINE electrode can effectively reduce the drift of neuronal signals between channels caused by brain pulsation, allowing for stable and continuous lossless collection of single-neuron signals. This recording characteristic is due to the combination of its ultra-flexibility and low invasiveness. In addition to flexibility, it also significantly reduces tissue damage. Its excellent mechanical strength ensures safe use during implantation while maintaining a minimal size.uFINE's implant cross-sectional area is close to the neuronal size level., achieving more favorable tissue integration and enabling faster recovery of neural activity post-implantation.
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Covering uFINE electrodes, manual advancement devices for micro-nano electrodes, and the StairPlex high-throughput neural signal acquisition system.(Figure 4), providing clinical research users worldwide with a full set of safe, efficient, and advanced equipment and technical services. This product is compatible with surgical procedures coveringDBS, biopsy, brain tumor/epilepsy focus resection, and hydrocephalus drainage surgery, etc.; brain regions include the prefrontal lobe (middle frontal gyrus, superior frontal gyrus, pre-supplementary motor area PreSMA, etc.), areas near the precentral gyrus (supplementary motor area SMA), motor cortex M1 (lip region and hand region, etc.), angular gyrus, cerebellum, etc.; patients can be under local anesthesia or intraoperative awakening, cooperating with various awake paradigms. Compatible with surgical robots, it can also be applied in DBS electrode implantation, ventricular shunt surgery, etc. The product has complete medical compliance testing materials to assist in IIT ethics applications.。
Figure 4. StairMed Full-Stack Clinical Research Intraoperative Electrophysiology Solution
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This solution not only provides precise tools for the treatment of brain diseases but also opens a window to understanding the essence of human consciousness. uFINE is expected to play a key role in future brain-machine interfaces (BMI) by providing stable and reliable neural signal control of prosthetics or other assistive devices. Its large-scale, long-term recording capabilities and minimal tissue damage characteristics make it an important tool in advancing BMI technology. We hope that with the joint efforts of our team and collaborators, we can promote the exploration and research of next-generation brain-computer interfaces, advanced cognitive functions, and mechanisms of brain diseases. We have reason to expect that this brain science revolution, led by Chinese researchers, will redefine the boundaries of future healthcare.
Large-scalesingle-neuronrecordingusingthe uFINEarrayinhumancortex
ShunWu,ZhiqiangYan,CenKong,XiaLi,QiufengDong,YoukunQian,GuangyuanChen,,BeibeiChen,ChiRen,JunfengLu,XiaofanJiang,ZhengtuoZhao,andXueLi.
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