Advanced Platform Technology Center
SPiRE Grant to Drs. Shire and Tyler for Advanced In-Line Connectors
Cleveland, Ohio—Dr. Shire’s SPiRE study is entitled "In-Line 32-Channel Connector for High-Density Implantable Medical Device." In this project, Drs. Shire & Tyler will endeavor to address the fact that while advancements in high density nerve cuff electrodes and neurostimulation technology have been significant over the last decade, chronically implantable in-line interconnection technology for the associated leads has not kept pace. Testing of the resulting technology development will be through regularly-spaced animal trials begun approximately three months into the proposed program, which will run through the conclusion of the 15-month effort. The outcome will support the deployment of advanced implantable systems for rehabilitation for years to come, and will be easily adaptable to different channel-count requirements. We wish both Dr. Shire and Dr. Tyler every success over the next two years with their study!
Dr. Douglas Shire is currently a Principal Investigator (PI) of the Advanced Platform Technology Center of Excellence [APT Center] at the Louis Stokes Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center [LSDVAMC] in Cleveland, Ohio, and a Visiting Scientist at the Nanofabrication Facility at Cornell University. Dr. Shire received the B.S. degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY in 1984 and the Ph.D. degree from Cornell University, Ithaca, NY in 1989, both in Electrical Engineering. Dr. Shire also completed his postdoctoral training in Electrical Engineering at Cornell University. Dr. Tyler completed his undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering at Michigan Technological University in Houghton, Michigan in 1992 and obtained his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland in 1999. Dr. Shire joined the APT Center in 2013, while Dr. Tyler has been an active core investigator of the Center since 2005.
About the RR&D SPiRE program: The Small Projects in Rehabilitation Research (SPiRE) program is an intramural funding mechanism to support investigator-initiated research conducted by eligible VA-ORD investigators at VA medical centers or VA-approved sites. SPiRE Awards are RR&D’s mechanism for funding small scope and duration basic, translational and clinical studies of disorders and diseases of importance to the rehabilitation of veterans. The goal of RR&D is to maximize functional recovery, including therapies that repair and restore function. Additional goals include integrating the veteran back into family, work and society. Areas of emphasis are broad and expansive, encompassing basic scientific research that has strong implications for translation into clinical practice, as well as rehabilitation strategies, interventions and techniques, including prosthetic devices, and reintegration of veterans into all facets of civilian life.
About the APT Center: The APT Center is a Veterans Administration Center of Excellence for research and development, specifically focused on rehabilitation. The Center has over 30 investigators, biomedical engineers and clinical staff. Though started with VA funding, it has secured grants from several state, regional and national organizations. It has produced a multitude of peer-reviewed articles, been featured at many national and international conferences and has over 40 patent-pending concepts/prototypes that will serve the clinical needs of veterans with sensory, motor and cognitive deficits or limb loss. For additional information about the APT Center, please follow the link: http://www.aptcenter.research.va.gov/aptcenterresearch/
Sense of Touch, a segment on Dr. Tyler's VA-sponsored research conducted in the APT Center at the LSCDCVAMC, aired January 14, 2014 on Discovery Channel's Daily Planet. Watch it here!
