Periodic Reporting for period 1 - GBM Neuro Snooper (Preclinical in vivo validation of a glioblastoma neuro snooper electrical device)
Reporting period: 2023-11-01 to 2025-04-30
Glioblastoma (GBM) is an aggressive and fast-growing type of brain tumour that originates in the glial cells of the brain. It is highly resistant to standard treatments like surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, leading to poor prognosis and limited survival rates for patients. This therapeutic failure is explained by a high tumour heterogeneity resulting in molecular and cellular adaptations that favour relapse and therapy resistance. Recently, tumor treating fields (TTF) were validated in phase 3, positioning electric stimulation as the 4th GBM therapeutical tool. Our device 'Neuro Snooper', originally developed for Brain Computer interface, is a unique opportunity for GBM. It is perfectly designed to record and stimulate the surgical cavity and provides a unique solution to monitor the peritumoral GBM microenvironment to detect early relapse, monitor therapies and also stimulate locally in the case of GBM relapse. The ERC-funded GBM Neuro Snooper project aimed to validate a proof-of-concept for this new medical device, the ‘GBM Neuro Snooper’ that can be used for neural recording and stimulation. The objective for this device is to profile in situ electrophysiology after tumour resection, offering new insights into brain tumour mechanisms and patient treatment strategies. Unlike existing devices, this miniaturised implant has been designed for moderate invasiveness.
Previous results obtained in rodents were positive as the glial scar around ‘Neuro Snooper’ devices was reduced in comparison to other devices used in the litterature, allowing for more potential for longer term recording of action potentials as well as local field potentials. We performed a preclinical study in minipigs. They are animal models that are closer to the human and are essential in order to prepare a future clinical study (mainly validate clinical gesture, ensure no infection issues). We had to modify the process of sterilization to be compatible with clinical constraints. As in rodents, we obtained data comforting the moderate invasiveness of the device and its capacity to follow action potentials and local fields potentials in GBM animal models. Also the implanted part of the device seems to be MRI compatible. Finally, we reached another objective that was to show our capacity to caracterize better the Glioblastoma pathology through electrophysiology recording with our device.
Those results will be reported in open access publications. The follow-up of this study is to up-scale the device in a start-up company and achieve its first clinical use in Glioblastoma patients. In the long term, this technology may be used for other patients than those with Glioblastoma and it should also aid in advancing our understanding of conditions like epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease.