Gastrointestinal neuroprosthesis for motility and metabolic neuromodulation
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s41467-025-62413-6.pdf
Description
Published version
Size
4.51 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
1608ccff12bbae8c2d850822b7a2724c
Author(s)
Srinivasan, Shriya
Antonini, Marc-Joseph
Alshareef, Amro
Sahasrabudhe, Atharva
Jenkins, Josh
Ishida, Keiko
Kuosmanen, Johannes
Hayward, Alison
Min, Seokkee
Langer, Robert
Date Issued
August 10, 2025
Journal
Nature Communications
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Citation
Srinivasan, S., Antonini, MJ., Alshareef, A. et al. Gastrointestinal neuroprosthesis for motility and metabolic neuromodulation. Nat Commun 16, 7374 (2025).
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Gastrointestinal (GI) dysmotility and associated conditions affect over 20% of population, yet pharmacological, behavioural, and surgical interventions offer limited therapeutic efficacy. Targeted electrical stimulation addressing underlying neuromuscular pathology stands to transform our ability to treat dysmotility. Here, we developed a closed-loop GI neuroprosthesis which activates or relaxes GI tract musculature through electrochemical stimulation in response to sensed food stimuli. We additionally describe a tool supporting minimally invasive endoscopically guided implantation that can penetrate the mucosa, accurately localize the submucosa, and safely deploy this device to directly interface with the enteric nervous system. The neuroprosthesis enables generation of coordinated peristaltic waves, significantly increasing the motility rate in a swine model of oesophageal and stomach dysmotility (p < 0.05, student’s t-test). Further, by directly modulating the myenteric plexus and thus mimicking meal ingestion, we induce peristalsis in a fasted state and achieve a metabolic response commensurate with a fed or satiated state. This neuroprosthesis and implantation platform expand opportunities in fundamental studies and treatments of metabolic and neuromuscular pathologies affecting the GI tract.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT
Harvard University--MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology
McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Research Laboratory of Electronics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemistry
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Division of Comparative Medicine
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Materials Science and Engineering
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Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-62413-6
