A groundbreaking new treatment that would prevent epileptic seizures is in the offing, after a local research company and two universities teamed up on a three-year project.
The research aims to come up with a device which, when implanted in the brain of epilepsy sufferers, would automatically detect and stop potential seizures using novel techniques.
“We believe this treatment is ground-breaking because, while there are various therapies and treatments for epilepsy, including implants, this one is based on the very latest findings in the field of optogenetics, which is the use of light to control neurons that have been genetically sensitised to light.
“This new approach will make the device both more acceptable to the human body, with less physical resistance to its presence, and much more accurate and effective in detecting and treating epileptic seizures,” neuroscientist and founder of AAT Research, Adrian Attard Trevisan, said.
The idea for this research, called EpileFree Project, has been in the pipeline for months, but the work formally kicked off this week and will be carried out over the following three years.
Funded by the Malta Council for Science and Technology, the research collaboration includes local bio-medical research and development company AAT Research Ltd, the University of Malta (Prof. Giuseppe Di Giovanni) and the University of Cardiff (Prof. Vincenzo Crunelli).
When contacted, Prof. Di Giovanni, the project’s leader, said the technology that they wanted to develop was the first of its kind in Malta.
The device will be more acceptable to the human body
“While this is striking in itself, it will in turn pave the way for the adaption of this device for human use, revolutionising the way epilepsy is treated,” he added.
Epilepsy affects more than 50 million people worldwide. While there are several effective treatments, some patients experience major adverse effects or do not become seizure free.
The latter are subjected to sudden and unforeseen seizures that impact their everyday life with temporary impairment of movement, perception, speech, memory or consciousness.
The EpileFree Project will look into an entirely new treatment that aims to overcome these limitations with the goal of developing and commercialising a device to stop epilepsy.
Prof. Di Giovanni explained: “The main focus of the research will be on the way brain cells behave just before a seizure, and what happens to their activity when a seizure is taking place. The findings will lead to the development of a new implantable device that prevents seizures from starting or spreading.”