Bionic ear doc"s new project

[lurch]

I'm not sure if this info has been on the cure forums before .
Anyway the doc in question is Clark who pioneered the bionic ear .
I found this interesting because this guy already knows what it is like to bring unheralded treatments from conception to clinical application.http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2007/s1837577.htm

[WADDiE]

Australian Scientists Developing Spinal Cord Implant

A team of scienetists at the Australian Research Council's Center are using "smart plastics" in creating an implant that can be surgically inserted into the damaged area of a patient's spinal cord. Upon implantation, the patient will receive the radio waves through the skin from a transmitter pack worn outside the body on their back. The waves would allow the release of nerve growth hormones that would trigger off the growth of damaged spinal nerves to regrow and eventually reconnect with other nerves.

To read the full article, see:
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7006325901

[antiquity]

Not sure if the radio waves help with healing or are just used to deliver the growth factors but it sounds promising. Unfortunately, a lack of funds is an issue, a common complaint among SCI researchers. :(

I did find this:

J Control Release. 2006 Dec 1;116(3):285-94.
Optimising the incorporation and release of a neurotrophic factor using conducting polypyrrole.
ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science, University of Wollongong, Northfields Avenue, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia.

... The NT-3 release results indicated that the polymers grown for longer released a lower percentage of the incorporated NT-3 compared to the polymers grown for shorter times. Polymer-based neurotrophin delivery systems have the potential to be incorporated into future treatments for nerve injuries to prevent nerve degradation and promote nerve protection.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=17112619&query_hl=1&itool=pubmed_docsum

The last time I heard about NT-3 was when Neotherapeutics was testing it.

[zoki83]

Here is a link to something I got a hold of which states that the Australian Government knocked backed Dr.Clarks asking of a loan of $10 million.

http://www.barossa-region.org/Australia/BLOODY-QUEENSLANDERS.......-294.html

The article is not really about spinal cord injury but here is the paragraph in regards to the funding:

'The Australian inventor of the bionic ear, Prof Graham Clark, has developed a neural prostheses for the relief of spinal cord injury. He asked the government for a $10mill loan to develop this technology and was refused (this was the same week in which the government allocated $14mill to Soccer Australia to help cover its debts).'