LI researchers get $6.7M to map vagus nerve
The vagus nerve extends from the brain through the neck, chest and into the abdomen. Researchers are exploring how two-way traffic on the nerve regulates our organs. Credit: Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research
The National Institutes of Health has awarded a $6.7 million grant to researchers at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research to map the vagus nerve, the body's "superhighway" for carrying impulses to regulate our organs.
A team of about 15 scientists at Manhasset-based Feinstein Institutes will apply high-tech tools in the three-year effort to map the estimated 200,000 fibers of the vagus nerve.
Dr. Stavros Zanos, associate professor at the Institute of Bioelectronic Medicine at the Feinstein Institutes, the research arm of Northwell Health, will lead the study.
Bioelectronic medicine, the use of electrical signals to regulate biological processes, is in its infancy. Thus far, developers of implanted stimulation devices have won Food and Drug Administration approval to treat epilepsy and depression by sending impulses through the vagus nerve.
The study of vagus nerve treatments for other ailments, such as colitis, lupus, stroke, rheumatoid arthritis and post-traumatic stress disorder, are in clinical trials.
Zanos said that until recently, scientists did not have the tools to try to map the vagus nerve, whose fibers meander from the brain stem in various configurations of bundles that connect to organs throughout the body.
“The vagus nerve is a principal superhighway transmitting information in both directions between the brain and body; it can turn on and off our immune system,” said Dr. Kevin Tracey, president and chief executive of the Feinstein Institutes and a veteran bioelectronics researcher.
Mapping the vagus nerve "cable" down to the fiber level opens new options for treatment, Zanos said.
"How can we hack this cable to inject stimuli … so we can fix problems with the organs?" he said. "It all has to do with this single nerve."
The researchers will map the vagus nerves of 30 cadavers. The team will use advanced imaging and stain individual fiber elements. The data will be analyzed through artificial intelligence and computer vision algorithms to produce a detailed map.
Leading the data analysis effort is Theodoros Zanos, an assistant professor at Feinstein Institutes who holds a doctorate in biomedical engineering. He is the lead investigator's brother.
Stavros Zanos said that the project is only feasible by using advanced computer tools to analyze the data.
"No single human — or even hundreds of thousands of humans — can do it," he said. "You need something that doesn't sleep."
The Feinstein Institute team is one of two selected by the NIH to mount studies to map the vagus nerve.
A team from Case Western Reserve and Duke universities will get $15.75 million to use different imaging tools in their three-year effort.
Ken Schachter covers corporate news, including technology and aerospace, and other business topics for Newsday. He has also worked at The Miami Herald and The Jerusalem Post.
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