That's a Wrap (Episode 149)
Guest: Damiano Barone
Today we are speaking with Dr. Damiano Barone. Damiano is a researcher and neurosurgeon at Houston Methodist Hospital in Houston. We discuss a recently published Nature Communications paper studying a novel spinal cord stimulation device. The device takes a new approach, having a section which wraps around the spinal cord, able to send stimulation and detect responses in the cord. This is in contrast to current epidural stimulators which stimulate only the dorsal section of the cord.
The work is early, but with the data gained in the study we could be seeing some significant changes in spinal stimulation from this device, namely, the ability to bypass the injury site all together. I’m excited about this development and its potential for functional recovery. You don’t wanna miss this one - let’s get to it.
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Bumper music: Dig a Hole by Freaque
Guest Bio
Damiano G. Barone, MD, PhD, FRCS(SN), is an Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery at Houston Methodist and Weill Cornell Medicine. He is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Rice University and Assistant Research Professor at the University of Cambridge.
A neurosurgeon-scientist working at the intersection of surgery and neuroengineering, Dr. Barone specializes in epilepsy surgery, functional neurosurgery and neuromodulation, and complex peripheral nerve and brachial plexus surgery. His clinical and scientific work is united by a focus on restoring neurological function.
Dr. Barone leads the Barone Neurorestoration Laboratory at Houston Methodist Research Institute and co-lead the bioelectronics laboratory with Professor George Malliaras at the University of Cambridge. His multidisciplinary team develops next-generation neural interfaces for the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system.
By integrating neurosurgery, bioelectronics, biomaterials, tissue engineering, and computational modeling, the lab advances circumferential, minimally invasive, and biohybrid interfaces designed to communicate with neural tissue with greater precision and durability. He earned his MD summa cum laude from the University of Naples Federico II and his PhD in Clinical Neurosciences from the University of Cambridge. He completed neurosurgical residency and postdoctoral work in electrical engineering at Cambridge, followed by fellowship training in functional and complex epilepsy surgery at the Walton Centre and peripheral nerve surgery at Mayo Clinic. His work advances a clear vision: moving neurosurgery beyond treating disease toward restoring lost function.
Connect with Damiano Barone:
- Facebook: @baronedg
- Instagram: @barone_dg
- X: @baronedg
- LinkedIn: @dgbarone
Related Research
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"Here we show that a single ultrathin circumferential electrode array, conforming to the spinal cord without penetrating neural tissue, can simultaneously decode motor intent, classify sensory inputs, and discriminate visceral sensory inputs." -
"Here, we develop cuff implants with a conformable design that achieve high-quality and stable interfacing with nerves in chronic implantation scenarios..."
