There\'s a reason that a broken neck or back is considered to be one of
the most tragic of injuries. If the spinal cord snaps, the brain loses
its ability to communicate with the rest of the body, and the limbs to
talk to each other. What most people don\'t realize is that when it
comes to locomotion, the second problem is actually worse than the
first. The chicken with its head cut off can still run around, thanks
to its spinal cord: The brain gave the signal to get going, then became
superfluous to requirements. But if the limbs can't "speak" to each
other to coordinate, then walking is impossible.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University (JHU; Baltimore) saw a way of
getting around the problem. It turns out that the coordinated movements
of limbs in all sorts of animals (including chickens) are produced by a
central pattern generator (CPG).
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Quadriplegics, people paralyzed from the neck down, know they are lucky if they can breathe by themselves, much less ever regain any use of their hands. But a surgical implant approved Monday by the Food and Drug Administration promises to deliver just that.
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Quadriplegics, people paralyzed from the neck down, know they are lucky if they can breathe by themselves, much less ever regain any use of their hands. But a surgical implant approved Monday by the Food and Drug Administration promises to deliver just that.