A team of researchers have developed a brain implant that has allowed paralyzed monkeys to walk once again and it may someday be used on humans.
The breakthrough technology works by decoding signals from the brain and sending them over the injured portion of the animal's spinal cord to the lower, still-healthy part of the spine.
The wireless system is being heralded as the first time that a brain implant successfully restored the locomotion of a paralyzed primate.
According to the neuroscientists behind the research, the two monkeys that received the implants were able to walk again within two weeks and required no special training to use the system.
Although designing a similar device for paralyzed humans is a more complex endeavor, scientists behind the implant believe that the latest tests confirm its viability.
As such, they hope to continue testing the technology on other animals with the ultimate goal of creating a version that could be used for humans sometime by the end of the decade.
Should that prove successful, it would be a landmark scientific achievement that may help the half-million people around the world stricken with spinal injuries.
Source: Daily Mail