Michael Kahana, PhD, the Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Term Professor of Psychology in Penn’s School of Arts and Sciences, was recently featured in the New York Post for his cutting-edge research in memory recall. In a landmark study last year, Kahana and his team used electrodes implanted in epilepsy patients’ brains to deliver targeted electrical pulses, improving memory recall by 28%.
The technology focuses on enhancing specific memory tasks, such as recalling whether medication was taken, rather than general memory performance. Kahana believes this innovation represents the dawn of a new era in neuroscience, offering potential breakthroughs in treating memory impairments caused by conditions like Alzheimer’s and traumatic brain injury. Read the full New York Post article here.
Kahana is also the co-founder of Penn spinout Nia Therapeutics, which is developing the world’s first implanted neurostimulation therapy for patients with memory loss due to traumatic brain injury. The technology, which is based on Penn IP, integrates neural sensing technology with advanced artificial intelligence to personalize neurostimulation delivery.