The “Neuromod Prize” (“the Competition”) is a prize competition of the SPARC (Stimulating Peripheral Activity to Relieve Conditions) initiative of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that seeks to reward and spur the development of solutions for targeted neuromodulation therapies. NIH anticipates that this will be a multi-phased competition
Image credit: NIH
Neuromodulation has the potential to treat many conditions in the body through regulation of the nervous system. Recent innovations in device technology and improved understanding of the interactions between the nervous system and target tissues and organs have led to a breakthrough moment in the field. As decades of research are applied in new ways, innovators are identifying novel neuromodulation approaches that are capable of selectively targeting multiple organs and functions. Bringing more of these solutions to patients will require better clinical translation and improved collaborations between industry, research, and government.
Advances in both device technology and scientific understanding of the nervous system have resulted in groundbreaking therapeutic potential, especially when those therapies have predictable and replicable effects on desired organ functions without unintended effects. Emerging research is identifying means to selectively target multiple organ functions by stimulating nerve terminals and sub-branches, through activation of selected nerve fascicles and/or parameterizing of the stimuli. Advancing these solutions will have transformative effects on the field of neuromodulation.
Submissions to this Challenge must be received by 11:59 PM EEST, April 8th, 2022.
Source: Challenge.gov