Regenerative Microchannel Electrode Array for Peripheral Nerve Interfacing

A regenerative microchannel scaffold capable of housing microelectrodes to form a high-throughput peripheral nerve interface is described. The regenerative microchannel scaffold was fabricated using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and SU-8 as substrate and structural materials, respectively. This microchannel scaffold is capable of being integrated with a PDMS-based thin-film microelectrode array (MEA) to form a peripheral nerve interface. Preliminary in vitro characterization was performed using dorsal root ganglia cultures to evaluate biocompatibility and the ability of the microchannel design to direct and orient neurite outgrowth. Our findings provided evidence that the microchannel design will be effective in directing axon regeneration to the benefit of a neural interfacing device.