US based Synchron Inc., a neurovascular bioelectronic medicine company, has announced that the University of Melbourne has been awarded an AUD$1.5M Medical Research Future Fund grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) of the Australian Government to expand the current clinical study of Synchron's Stentrode®.

The study is the first clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the Stentrode, the first interventional neuromodulation platform. This technology is designed to translate brain activity from the inside of a blood vessel, and is being explored for its potential to enable hands-free control of devices for people with upper limb paralysis.

"Having this support from the Australian government further validates the importance of our work and our confidence that this technology will lead to the realization of a treatment option with the capability to transform the lives of patients with paralysis," said Thomas Oxley, MD, PhD, CEO of Synchron. "The potential to advance this important work that this grant offers cannot be understated."

The funds will be used to expand the current feasibility study to include:

• additional patient participants.
• patient participants that experience paralysis due to conditions beyond motor neuron disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). These conditions may include stroke, spinal cord injury and muscular dystrophy.
• additional trial sites. While the trial is currently being conducted at the University of Melbourne, the study will be expanded to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney and Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital in Brisbane