UC San Diego researchers have achieved a medical breakthrough with a wearable, non-invasive device that records autonomic nerve activity, offering the potential for early detection of life-threatening conditions like sepsis.
Researchers led by UC San Diego have made a groundbreaking advancement by developing a wearable, non-invasive device capable of measuring human cervical nerve activity in clinical settings for the first time. The groundbreaking technology, capable of recording Autonomic Neurography (ANG), could revolutionize the early detection and treatment of inflammatory conditions such as sepsis.
This innovative device primarily targets the vagus and carotid sinus nerves — crucial components of the involuntary nervous system that control vital functions like digestion, heart rate and immune response. The significance of this development is vast, given that the vagus nerve plays a pivotal role in the body’s response to injury or infection, areas heavily researched due to their links to potentially deadly conditions, such as sepsis and PTSD.
The wearable technology offers clinicians a real-time, clinically validated tool for monitoring involuntary nervous system activity, an early indicator of bodily stress. As outlined in a 2022 Scientific Reports paper, the team created a flexible, adhesive-integrated electrode array. Their latest study, published in Nature Communications Biology, utilized this approach to detect deep neural activity in a simulated hyperinflammatory clinical model.
“We are encouraged by our results. The device is poised to provide an early diagnostic marker of pathogen infection, or inflammation from a pathological process,” the study’s senior author Imanuel Lerman, who’s the head of the Lerman Lab at UC San Diego’s Qualcomm Institute and founder of InflammaSense Inc., the company licensing the technology, said in a news release. “Based on the study results, we are now deploying the device at the intensive care units of the Jacobs Medical Center at UC San Diego Health. The device will detect early involuntary neural signaling indicative of impending sepsis.”
The study was led by Troy Bu, a doctoral candidate in the Jacobs School’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UC San Diego. The research aims at offering a non-invasive alternative to surgically implanted microelectrodes for monitoring the vagus nerve.
The new device detects cervical nerve activity using magnetoneurography — a powerful technique that senses magnetic fields generated by nerve activity. In tests conducted on nine adult human subjects, the device successfully recorded nerve responses to induced hyperinflammation. The subjects’ blood was drawn and their plasma was tested for baseline levels of inflammation-triggering proteins called cytokines. Researchers then introduced a bacterial toxin, lipopolysaccharide, to simulate inflammation similar to that of a blood infection.
Inside a magnetically shielded room, sensors were placed beneath the right ear and over the right carotid artery to monitor heart rate and nerve activity. Within 30 minutes of injection, the device detected changes in nerve activity, which researchers corroborated with blood samples and noticed a rise in specific inflammatory proteins.
“With sepsis, every minute counts and early treatments save lives,” Bu said in the news release. “Early sepsis detection is critical as, every hour sepsis is not treated, the likelihood of death increases by up to seven percent. Our technology can provide doctors with an early warning sign of hyperimmune or immunoparalysis response in sepsis. Doctors can then provide the correct treatment as quickly as possible.”
The study observed that patient responses varied, presenting as distinct peaks in inflammatory protein levels and side effects. Such insights could help identify patients most susceptible to severe inflammatory responses and tailor treatments accordingly. This technology could become an essential asset not only in detecting early signs of sepsis but also in managing other conditions, such as PTSD and tailoring specific nerve-targeted therapies.
This pioneering research involved multiple collaborators, including Sandia National Laboratories, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the VA Center for Stress and Mental Health, Quspin Laboratory, Stanford University and InflammaSense Inc.
By introducing this device into clinical practice, UC San Diego is on the verge of making significant strides in medical diagnostics, offering hope for early intervention and better outcomes for patients suffering from inflammatory conditions.