The recent exponential advances in computer technology have provided unprecedented opportunities in many scientific areas. Neuroscience is one of the fields that have benefited from the technology advances. Emerging neurotechnologies are anticipated to transform the investigative approach to clarifying how individual neurons interact with each other so that the brain achieves complex higher functions. The United States has launched the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative. This article summarizes the vision and goals of the initiative. In addition, some of the representative novel neurotechnologies that have served as the scientific foundation of the initiative will be discussed.

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  Even though basic neuroscience and clinical neurosurgery have developed independently, they mutually contribute to our understanding of the nervous system. In this article, I will introduce the differences between animal experiments and human studies, show the significance of primate research in animal experiments, give a detailed comparison between macaque monkeys, including rhesus monkeys and Japanese monkeys, and the common marmoset, and present some other studies. In order to understand the principles of the nervous system and to develop cutting-edge therapies, neurosurgeons and neuroscientists should collaborate to develop highly-sophisticated animal models.

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  Recently, our approach to the nervous system has shifted to treat human activity as a whole instead of investigating individual detailed activities by introducing the idea of “system” and “systems neuroscience”. Although the extent of this approach overlaps previous challenges such as psychology, behavioral science, and cognitive neuroscience, this approach places an emphasis on both the comprehension of each component subsystem and the interaction among them. Non-invasive investigation methods have contributed greatly to allow us to comprehend human brain activity collectively. As the nature of conscious brain possesses various aspects, great caution will be required in applying each investigating procedure. Spatial order in acquisition, the combination of different methods, and the confirmation of confidence level are also discussed in this article.

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  The aim of stem cell therapy for Parkinson’s disease (PD) is to reconstruct local synapse formation and/or induce the release of dopamine and cytokines from grafted cells in the putamen. Fetal ventral-midbrain cells are reported to relieve the neurological symptoms of PD patients. However, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are expected to provide an alternative donor cell population because of their capacity for self-renewal and pluripotency. A protocol to generate dopaminergic (DA) neurons from iPSCs has been developed, and human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) were proven to function in the brain of rat and monkey PD models. We have developed a method to isolate DA neuron progenitors as a donor cell population, which will enable us to perform trial demonstrating the allogenic transplantation of HLA-homozygous iPS cell-derived DA neurons for PD patients.

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  Neurotechnology, which is the application of neuroscience, offers us tools and services to better understand and improve brain functions. The Brain-Machine Interface (BMI) or Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) is a good example of Neurotechnology. BMI enables direct communication between the brain and external devices. BMIs are classified as invasive and non-invasive types. Electroencephalography (EEG)-based BMIs have advantages in their low cost, safety and portability even though they have limited controls. The author and his coworkers have been developing a cognitive BMI, the “Neurocommunicator” to support communication with people with severe motor disabilities. The system can predict a user’s decision about a message to be expressed by his/her CG avatar. This prediction is based on a real-time analysis of EEG data, especially event-related potentials (ERPs) such as P300. The system is currently being tested by patients in an at-home setting with a final goal of developing a commercial product. Recently, a new trial has begun, in which the patient can use a humanoid robot as his/her avatar. This BMI-controlled robot avatar would then express the user’s emotions with dynamic gestures. It would also interact with the real world on behalf of the users even in remote places.

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  This article introduces medical treatment litigation by exemplifying a case which deals with an unruptured brain aneurysm coil embolization surgery death, considers how the standard of medical care should be understood in neurosurgery, and by taking up complications like bleeding associated with drainage tube removal for chronic subdural hematoma removal surgery, concludes that a through explanation by the physician is the best defense.

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  A 35-year-old man presented with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Magnetic resonance angiography revealed three intracranial aneurysms : a middle cerebral artery (MCA) aneurysm, an internal carotid artery-anterior choroidal artery (IC-AC) aneurysm, and an internal carotid artery-posterior communicating artery (IC-Pcom) aneurysm. Three-dimensional fast spin echo T1 imaging with variable flip angles using gadolinium-enhancement (vessel wall magnetic resonance imaging : vessel wall MRI) showed wall enhancement only on the IC-AC aneurysm. We performed neck clipping for all three aneurysms by right transsylvian approach, and confirmed the sign of rupture on the IC-AC aneurysm. Post-operative course was uneventful and he recovered well.
  Vessel wall MRI is useful to identify the rupture site in the case of SAH with multiple intracranial aneurysms.

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