Enhancing prosthetic vision by upgrade of a subretinal photovoltaic implant in situ

Mohajeet B Bhuckory; Nicharee Monkongpitukkul; Andrew Shin; Anna Kochnev Goldstein; Nathan Jensen; Sarthak V Shah; Davis Pham-Howard; Emma Butt; Roopa Dalal; Ludwig Galambos; Keith Mathieson; Theodore Kamins; Daniel Palanker

doi:10.1038/s41467-025-58084-y

Enhancing prosthetic vision by upgrade of a subretinal photovoltaic implant in situ

Mohajeet B Bhuckory^*, Nicharee Monkongpitukkul, Andrew Shin, Anna Kochnev Goldstein, Nathan Jensen, Sarthak V Shah, Davis Pham-Howard, Emma Butt, Roopa Dalal, Ludwig Galambos, Keith Mathieson, Theodore Kamins, Daniel Palanker

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

In patients with atrophic age-related macular degeneration, subretinal photovoltaic implant (PRIMA) provided visual acuity up to 20/440, matching its 100 µm pixels size. Next-generation implants with smaller pixels should significantly improve the acuity. This study in rats evaluates removal of a subretinal implant, replacement with a newer device, and the resulting grating acuity in-vivo. Six weeks after the initial implantation with planar and 3-dimensional devices, the retina was re-detached, and the devices were successfully removed. Histology demonstrated a preserved inner nuclear layer. Re-implantation of new devices into the same location demonstrated retinal re-attachment to a new implant. New devices with 22 µm pixels increased the grating acuity from the 100 µm capability of PRIMA implants to 28 µm, reaching the limit of natural resolution in rats. Reimplanted devices exhibited the same stimulation threshold as for the first implantation of the same implants in a control group. This study demonstrates the feasibility of safely upgrading the subretinal photovoltaic implants to improve prosthetic visual acuity. [Abstract copyright: © 2025. The Author(s).]

Original language	English
Article number	2820
Journal	Nature Communications
Volume	16
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58084-y
Publication status	Published - 22 Mar 2025

Funding

Studies were supported by the National Institutes of Health (Grants R01-EY-035227; D.P., and P30-EY-026877; D.P.), the Department of Defense (Grant W81XWH-22-1-0933; D.P.), AFOSR (Grant FA9550-19-1-0402; D.P.), Wu Tsai Institute of Neurosciences at Stanford; D.P., and unrestricted grant from the Research to Prevent Blindness; D.P. Photovoltaic arrays were fabricated at the Stanford Nano Shared Facilities (SNSF) and Stanford Nanofabrication Facility (SNF), which are supported by the National Science Foundation award ECCS1542152; Stanford University. K.M. was supported by a Royal Academy of Engineering Chair in Emerging Technology, UK.

Keywords

Macular Degeneration - therapy - surgery
Rats, Long-Evans
Visual Acuity
Animals
Retina - surgery
Male
Visual Prosthesis
Rats

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1038/s41467-025-58084-yLicence: CC BY 4.0

Bhuckory-etal-NatComm-2025-Enhancing-prosthetic-vision-by-upgrade-of-a-subretinal-photovoltaic-implant-in-situFinal published version, 4.33 MBLicence: CC BY 4.0

Cite this

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title = "Enhancing prosthetic vision by upgrade of a subretinal photovoltaic implant in situ",

abstract = "In patients with atrophic age-related macular degeneration, subretinal photovoltaic implant (PRIMA) provided visual acuity up to 20/440, matching its 100 µm pixels size. Next-generation implants with smaller pixels should significantly improve the acuity. This study in rats evaluates removal of a subretinal implant, replacement with a newer device, and the resulting grating acuity in-vivo. Six weeks after the initial implantation with planar and 3-dimensional devices, the retina was re-detached, and the devices were successfully removed. Histology demonstrated a preserved inner nuclear layer. Re-implantation of new devices into the same location demonstrated retinal re-attachment to a new implant. New devices with 22 µm pixels increased the grating acuity from the 100 µm capability of PRIMA implants to 28 µm, reaching the limit of natural resolution in rats. Reimplanted devices exhibited the same stimulation threshold as for the first implantation of the same implants in a control group. This study demonstrates the feasibility of safely upgrading the subretinal photovoltaic implants to improve prosthetic visual acuity. [Abstract copyright: {\textcopyright} 2025. The Author(s).]",

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AU - Kochnev Goldstein, Anna

AU - Jensen, Nathan

AU - Shah, Sarthak V

AU - Pham-Howard, Davis

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AB - In patients with atrophic age-related macular degeneration, subretinal photovoltaic implant (PRIMA) provided visual acuity up to 20/440, matching its 100 µm pixels size. Next-generation implants with smaller pixels should significantly improve the acuity. This study in rats evaluates removal of a subretinal implant, replacement with a newer device, and the resulting grating acuity in-vivo. Six weeks after the initial implantation with planar and 3-dimensional devices, the retina was re-detached, and the devices were successfully removed. Histology demonstrated a preserved inner nuclear layer. Re-implantation of new devices into the same location demonstrated retinal re-attachment to a new implant. New devices with 22 µm pixels increased the grating acuity from the 100 µm capability of PRIMA implants to 28 µm, reaching the limit of natural resolution in rats. Reimplanted devices exhibited the same stimulation threshold as for the first implantation of the same implants in a control group. This study demonstrates the feasibility of safely upgrading the subretinal photovoltaic implants to improve prosthetic visual acuity. [Abstract copyright: © 2025. The Author(s).]

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Enhancing prosthetic vision by upgrade of a subretinal photovoltaic implant in situ

Abstract

Funding

Keywords

UN SDGs

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