A team of Italian researchers has developed an artificial retina that, in essence, functions like a self-powering solar panel. The fully organic retinal prosthesis was implanted into the eyes of rats with retinitis pigmentosa, which allowed them to see for months after surgery.
The implant consists of an organic semiconductor, a photovoltaic which turns light into current, and a conductive polymer to interface with the back of the eye, both placed on top of a substrate of silk. The silk helps the implant heal into place, being a porous and biocompatible natural material. There was no electrical circuitry or any kind of algorithmic signal generation that was required as part of this project. The material itself seems to integrate with the eye and take over the functionality of the retina, and the brain willingly going along, interpreting the new signals.
The researchers made sure to confirm that the rats actually saw using their new retinas by having them perform tricks that they needed sight for, as well as detecting the activation of the visual areas of their brain using positron emission tomography.
Study in Nature Materials: A fully organic retinal prosthesis restores vision in a rat model of degenerative blindness…