TED/Grégoire Courtine: The paralyzed rat that walked

This lecture is mainly about a new way discovered by Gregoire showing that we can repair a severed connection between spine and brain, using a new method combining drugs, electrical stimulation and robotic machines. It was said to own the ability to re-awake the neural pathways and help the body learn again to move on its own. Just to perform how it works, the lecturer used a paralyzed rat as an example and made it able to run on its feet again.

The miracle took place In a lab in Switzerland, as a little white rat learns to walk and run again. Grégoire was one of the primary members in the experiment, they fixed the problem of neural connection between the spinal cord, not with any tools or help from the outside, but on its own instead. The treatment involves a re-awakening cocktail of chemicals released onto the spinal cord, combined with electrical stimulation. Plus repeated exercise that rehearses the walking movement. As part of the experiment, the team developed a robot that gently supports the paralyzed rat vertically but does not push it forward; the rat has to decide to move on its own. At the end, it was all up to the patient whether he has the strong will to go on or not. And eventually, it does. As Gregoire explains, "the training forces the brain to recruit what is left of the neural system to get the job done."

Nowadays Gregoire is trying hard to promote his new method of repairing the neural system, persuading medical facilities to take his ways and methods, hoping to help more of the patients who were suffering from the same disorder.

This experiment also raised the attention of some animal protection advocates. Once again, some said that it was just immoral using the rats as an example of such medical experiments. Never mind how many lives were lost during the procedure before it finally came down to the ultimate solution. All you have to do is consider how much you value the life of a rat and if that is anywhere near as much as you value the life of a person. Without animal models there is very little we can do to develop medicine. Our ethical controls over the use of lab animals is extremely strict and the potential value of the research is always weighed against the use of the animal. No researchers take their lives for granted and they are kept in comfortable conditions. It is always strange to me that people get up in arms about the use of animals in research when they eat so much meat.