CardiacTEEM

Brown University

Cardiotoxicity of pharmaceutical drugs, industrial chemicals, and environmental toxicants can be severe, even life threatening, which necessitates a thorough evaluation of human response to chemical compounds. Predicting risks for arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death accurately is critical for defining safety profiles. Currently available approaches have limitations including a focus on single select ion channels, the use of non-human species in vitro and in vivo, and limited direct physiological translation. CardiacTEEM has developed in vitro 3D models of atrial and ventricular tissues from human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes that can be used to evaluate chamber-specific responses without the need for animals. This self-assembled 3D microtissue technology provides a straightforward way to analyze physiologically relevant metrics like action potential patterns. CardiacTEEM is exploring applications in pharmaceutical development as well as environmental chemical toxicity testing.

SOMA

Brown University

The prevalence of chronic pain is currently on the rise, however, there are few effective and accessible cognitive-behavioral interventions that are widely available to the population experiencing chronic pain. Limited healthcare system capabilities and high treatment costs prevent many patients from receiving or even seeking non-pharmaceutical care. Therefore, there is a need for a more accessible, affordable, and efficacious technology that will allow individuals with acute or chronic pain to track and manage their pain symptoms and triggers. The SOMA Pain Manager is a smartphone application that allows acute and chronic pain patients to track and predict pain. Further, a digital therapeutic program is currently being integrated into the application that will deliver cognitive-behavioral interventions. Overall, the SOMA app provides an easy and accessible option for individuals seeking to manage and treat their pain symptoms.

Neufi

Brown University

The field of brain-machine interfaces has advanced significantly over the past two decades, particularly in its successful transition into human clinical trials. However, this progress has largely relied on wired, invasive sensors for the acquisition of neural data. Neufi has leveraged cutting-edge integrated circuit technology and nanofabrication methods to develop a battery-less, ultra-low-power, compact volume “thread” that can be injected under the scalp for chronic tracking of brain rhythms and patterned electrical stimulation. The technology has high spatial and temporal resolution and has potential applications in many areas of neurology and psychiatry.