Ben Johnson - Vanishingly-Small Bioelectronic Medicine for Closed-loop Therapy

Dr. Ben Johnson
BSU, Dept. Electrical and Computer Engineering

bcjohnson@boisestate.edu

Zoom Link

Abstract:

Bioelectronic medicines are devices that read and modulate the electrical activity of the body’s nervous system to treat diseases and conditions that are resistant to conventional pharmaceutical therapy. A potential advantage of bioelectronic medicine over other treatment interventions will be the ability to perform automated, closed-loop therapy by sensing the patient’s state and then providing adaptive, on-demand therapy. Closing the loop will improve efficacy, reduce side effects, and reduce clinician burden. However, clinical technology relies on large, bulky devices that are highly invasive and uses electronics that cannot sense weak neural signals and electrically stimulate at the same time. In this talk, I will discuss my research efforts to overcome these technical barriers to achieving the vision of closed-loop bioelectronic medicine.

Biography:

Ben received his PhD in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University in 2014. After which, he helped launch Cortera Neurotechnologies, a startup company focused on the next generation of neuromodulation therapies. He also worked as a research scientist at UC Berkeley before joining Boise State in 2018.