Message #39 From:
NewsBot Date: November 6, 2006 05:28:00 AM
CYKN News Dr. Ronald Emerson of Columbia University Medical Center Reports Initial Results from Study of Cyberkinetics' NeuroPort(TM) System at the ACNS Meeting
FOXBOROUGH, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems, Inc. (OTCBB: CYKN; “Cyberkinetics”)
announced that Ronald G. Emerson, M.D., reported preliminary results
from an ongoing study of Cyberkinetics’
NeuroPort™ Neural Monitoring System at the
Annual Meeting of the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society in
Chicago, Illinois, on Friday, November 3, 2006. The study is currently
underway at the Columbia University Medical Center in New York City.
Results from a patient who had the NeuroPort™
sensor implanted along with standard intracranial Electroencephalography
(iEEG) sensors, showed that with the Cyberkinetics’
NeuroPort™ System physicians were able to:
successfully record and monitor brain electrical activity in more
detail than with iEEG alone;
better characterize seizure genesis due to the ability to record at
the level of neural networks;
correlate this activity to an epileptic seizure; and also
identify the onset of seizure activity earlier than with iEEG.
Dr. Emerson is a world-recognized leader in the field of
neurophysiological and critical care monitoring and advanced methods of
EEG analysis and a professor of clinical neurology in the Columbia
Comprehensive Epilepsy Center at Columbia University College of
Physicians & Surgeons. A copy of Dr. Emerson’s
abstract is available from the Cyberkinetics website in the Media Room
at http://www.cyberkineticsinc.com/content/aboutus/mediakit.jsp.
“Using Cyberkinetics’
NeuroPort™ sensor, we have been able to gain
access to brain electrical activity at a new level of detail,”
commented Dr. Emerson. “Because we can
observe seizure-related activity in much greater detail, it appears that
we may be able to detect the onset of seizures sooner than we were able
to detect it with EEG. Based on this new information, it appears that
this patient’s seizures may actually occur
much more gradually – and even in a different
location -- than we had previously thought. This finding suggests that
ultimately we may be able to provide better diagnosis and treatment of
epilepsy. Further, I expect that high resolution recordings using, and
eventually neural interfaces based on, this technology will lead to a
better understanding of and improved therapies for other neurological
disorders including stroke and Parkinson’s
disease.”
“Cyberkinetics’
neural sensing and decoding platform technology has already been
demonstrated to detect and interpret brain signals related to movement
in individuals whose brains are functioning normally,”
said John Donoghue, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer, Director and
Founder of Cyberkinetics. “Now, with these
new findings that Dr. Emerson and his team have shown, we may be able to
use the same fundamental technology to reduce the impact of neurological
disorders and injuries.”
Cyberkinetics’ NeuroPort™
System, cleared to market in the United States, is a medical device that
is indicated for the temporary (less than 30 days) recording and
monitoring of brain electrical activity. The NeuroPort™
System is a novel diagnostic neural monitoring tool designed to provide
neurologists and neurosurgeons with detailed, cellular-level information
regarding the electrical activity of the brain, which might lead to more
accurate diagnoses and enhanced patient outcomes.
“More than 200,000 patients in the United
States alone undergo surgical procedures and monitoring related to
epilepsy, as well as other brain disorders and trauma at a cost to our
healthcare system of more than a billion dollars annually,”
added Timothy R. Surgenor, President and Chief Executive Officer of
Cyberkinetics. “Cyberkinetics’
unique neural monitoring technology platform continues to demonstrate
the potential to improve treatment for these patients.”
In March 2006, Cyberkinetics and Columbia University Medical Center
signed a collaborative agreement to evaluate the utility of brain
electrical activity recordings obtained using Cyberkinetics’
NeuroPort™ System. Columbia intends to use
the NeuroPort System to improve the understanding of certain abnormal
human brain processes, which may include those commonly associated with
epileptic seizures, Parkinson’s disease and
other movement disorders, as well as many other neurological diseases.
As part of the agreement, Cyberkinetics has an option to license any
inventions derived from the research collaboration. The investigative
research is led by Dr. Emerson, who has recruited a top-notch team of
neurosurgeons, neurologists and neurophysiologists to assist him as
co-investigators with the research collaboration.
About Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems, Inc.
Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems, Inc., a leader in the
neurotechnology industry, is developing neural stimulation, sensing and
processing technology to improve the lives of those with severe
paralysis resulting from spinal cord injuries, neurological disorders
and other conditions of the nervous system. Cyberkinetics’
product development pipeline includes: the Andara™
Oscillating Field Stimulator (OFS™) Device,
an investigative device designed to stimulate regeneration of the neural
tissue surrounding the spinal cord and to restore sensation and motor
function; the BrainGate System, an investigative device designed to
provide communication and control of a computer, assistive devices, and,
ultimately, limb movement; and the NeuroPort™
System, which is cleared to market in the United States, a neural
monitor designed for acute inpatient applications and labeled for
temporary (less than 30 days) recording and monitoring of brain
electrical activity. Additional Information is available at Cyberkinetics’
website at http://www.cyberkineticsinc.com.
Forward-Looking Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements, including
statements about Cyberkinetics' product development plans and progress,
potential development of proprietary inventions and benefits that may be
realized by certain research programs. These statements are made
pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and can be identified by the use of
forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "believe," "expect,"
"anticipate" or other comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements
involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements and
reported results shall not be considered an indication of our future
performance. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences
include our limited operating history; our lack of profits from
operations; our ability to successfully develop and commercialize our
proposed products; a lengthy approval process and the uncertainty of FDA
and other governmental regulatory requirements; clinical trials may fail
to demonstrate the safety and effectiveness of our products; the degree
and nature of our competition; our ability to employ and retain
qualified employees; compliance with recent legislation regarding
corporate governance, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002; as well
as those risks more fully discussed in our public filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, all of which are difficult to
predict and some of which are beyond our control.
