By Leandro Castelluccio, MSc - CEO Naxon. There is an increasing innovation in the clinical psychological field and in the area of personal wellbeing in general, driven by the incorporation of important technological advances that have a significant impact in various disciplines within health. A recent case for example, has been the considerable progress in the incorporation of technologies such as virtual reality for the psychological treatment and management of phobias and situations of stress and anguish, to such an extent that it has become an important ally of professionals to improve the quality of life of patients. For those who are not aware of another recent development, Brain-Computer Interfaces or BCIs are having a similar impact, although we are just beginning to explore their applicability for professionals in health. A BCI represents a direct communication path between an improved or connected brain and an external device. It can be invasive in the form of electrodes implanted directly in the brain or non-invasive through an electroencephalogram or EEG, for example, which reads the electrical brain waves in our scalp that result in commands executed by an external hardware and software. A recent development in BCI has been the creation of portable EEG devices that connect to a computer, tablet or smartphone through Bluetooth, which can really expand the development of applications given this connectivity, as well as the low cost they present, added to the non-invasive qualities. Among these devices is Muse developed by the Canadian company Interaxon. It is marketed as a device for anyone who wants to train relaxation and mindfulness. It is also marketed for mental health professionals to work on these aspects linked to the relaxation response and mindfulness. (A person using Muse for meditation, image taken from link) By reading the brain waves produced by the brain, the Muse can detect if the levels of attention and relaxation increase or decrease during a meditation session. Through a system of feedback based on different environmental or musical sounds, the device translates neuronal information into useful signals for the person: if the ambient sound increases in intensity the person is less relaxed and focused and vice versa.  Information that one can find in the Muse application As part of my work at Naxon, where we are developing practical applications with portable EEG devices, I had the opportunity to test for a while the use of the original Muse and Muse 2 to train meditation. One of the points to highlight given my personal experience is that the use of the device helps a lot to encourage the daily practice of meditation and promotes a positive feedback to get involved with this healthy practice. In turn, the Muse provides a detailed record of your meditation activity that allows one to keep track of the evolution of the practice and how the training impacts over time in our anxious responses and in the speed and effectiveness by whcih we managed to induce a relaxation response. In general, the experience has been very comforting and I believe that it has a very good potential in clinical practice for health professionals, for the reasons described above, since it allows the professional to have an accurate record of certain cognitive-emotional responses related to stress and relaxation, and at the same time it represents a tool to work on different techniques in sessions with clients to control anxiety and stress. In turn, unlike a more traditional approach, the use of a novel technological tool allows the client to be more involved and also to monitor a practice remotely that the client can perform at home with the Muse device of the therapist. This record is also very useful for having an accurate measurement of the particular training of a person in meditation, a measure that is very important when conducting scientific studies involving novice individuals or experts in practice. The first model of the device uses brain wave reading to work on meditation. The renewed Muse 2 also offers a measure of heart frequency, the activity of our breathing and the movements of our body. With these new signals, new types of meditations based on these measures can be performed, which make excellent anxiety and stress response markers, which provide even more assistance for professionals, as well as for users who wish to start the practice of meditation or want to improve their experience with it.   Unleashing the Potential of Muse Neurofeedback and Brain Waves The Muse device brings a groundbreaking approach to meditation and neurofeedback, tapping into the power of brain waves. With its innovative muse neurofeedback system, users can gain insights into their own brain activity and unlock the secrets of their cognitive states. By providing real-time feedback based on the Muse brain waves, the device becomes a valuable tool for enhancing mindfulness and managing stress. Through the Muse device's neurofeedback capabilities, individuals can actively train their brain to achieve desired states of relaxation and focus. By monitoring and analyzing muse brain waves, users receive immediate feedback, enabling them to refine their meditation practice and cultivate a deeper sense of calmness. The Muse neurofeedback system acts as a guide, assisting users in navigating their inner landscape and optimizing their cognitive well-being. With the Muse device, the power of brain waves becomes a tangible and transformative experience. By harnessing muse neurofeedback and exploring the intricacies of muse brain waves, individuals can unlock their full potential for self-improvement and personal growth. Whether used by professionals in clinical settings or individuals seeking to enhance their meditation practice, the Muse device opens doors to a new realm of understanding and harnessing the power of the mind.

In July 2017, under the code name "Naxon", exchanging ideas from the neuroscientific and information technology perspectives, the initiative to work with portable EEG technologies emerged with the aim of developing practical and economic solutions for some of the problems present in the areas of Health and Well-being. Maturing the idea during 2018 we began to experiment with Neurosky and Muse devices, and the first stage of development of the venture was conceptualized. A Brain-Computer interface or BCI is a direct communication pathway between an enhanced or wired brain and an external device. These can be invasive in the form of electrodes implanted directly on the brain or non-invasive through an EEG for example, that reads the electrical brain waves on our scalp that are translated into commands that an external hardware and software executes.  You can see the following video for an introduction on the subject: link As shown in the video, BCI can be used for a variety of things, such as helping people with physical disabilities to adapt better through the use of a robotic hand controlled by the mind for example, or use BCI in gaming to execute different commands, or to control other external hardware, like a drone (see the following video). Apart from these example, the technology allows for many applications in different fields the have not yet been explored. Examples of portable EEG devices include: Emotiv Insight, Neurosky and Muse. One of the basic elements of brain functioning lies in the synapse. This is the point where electrical signals from one neuron generate electrical effects in another. The initiation of an action potential, for example, that which allows transmitting nerve impulses, and which is the basis of brain functioning at the level of the neuron, requires the opening of sodium ion channels in the mound of the axon of the neuron. At this level, the phenomena depend on physical and chemical properties and on the characteristics of the biological structures at play. To unleash an action potential, a certain trigger threshold must be overcome thanks to the action of graduated potentials that are added temporally and spatially, provided by the connections with other neurons. In order for activity to occur in the latter, the same phenomena must occur (Kandel, Schwartz, & Jessel, 2001). These EEG devices exploit this electrical property of the brain. Neurons signal electrically. The potential (voltage) across their cell membranes changes, when channels in the membrane open and ions move down their electrochemical gradients. Synapse (image taken from: link) There are different ways of measuring brain activity, all can be classified according to temporal resolution, spatial resolution and invasiveness. (Figure adapted from Churchland & Sejnowski, 1988) The classical electrophysiological monitoring method records electrical activity of the brain, which is mainly noninvasive, with electrodes placed along the scalp, although invasive electrodes are sometimes used such as in electrocorticography. Associated to the use of EEG, we have event-related potentials which investigate potential fluctuations time locked to an event like stimulus onset or button press. Also, spectral content of EEG: analyses the type of neural oscillations (popularly called "brain waves") that can be observed in EEG signals in the frequency domain. EEG reflects large-scale neural activity, producing tiny electrical dipoles which transduce through the skull. However, this electrical activity is incredibly small and must be amplified thousands of times.   Besides research use, EEG is usually used in clinical contexts for diagnostic applications such as in the case of epilepsy, which causes abnormalities in EEG readings. Also in sleep disorders, depth of anesthesia, coma, encephalopathies, and brain death.  It is also a first-line method of diagnosis for tumors, stroke and other focal brain disorders, but this use has decreased with the advent of high-resolution anatomical imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT).  Despite limited spatial resolution, EEG continues to be a valuable tool for research and diagnosis. It is one of the few mobile techniques available and offers millisecond-range temporal resolution which is not possible with CT, PET or MRI.Derivatives of the EEG technique like evoked potentials (EP), are useful, which involves averaging the EEG activity time-locked to the presentation of a stimulus of some sort (visual, somatosensory, or auditory). Event-related potentials (ERPs) on the other hand, refer to averaged EEG responses that are time-locked to more complex processing of stimuli; this technique is used in cognitive science, cognitive psychology, and psychophysiological research. ERPs can be collected across the lifespan. This has implications for obtaining early and objective rather than late and subjective measures of sensory and cognitive sensitivity. Participants do not have to be actively listening to record meaningful auditory ERP for example. This has implications for assessing neural activity in the resting brain, coma and other such states. Auditory (and visual) ERPs can also be assessed under varying conditions of task load and intention. This might help us uncover memory and attention processes. The new portable devices typically have fewer electrodes, but have the advantage of rapid setting, without the need to use gels and be on a lab, are much cheaper, they can be used in different settings and connect wirelessly to a computer device for example.  Some of these devices, like we previously mentioned are the Emotiv, Neurosky and Muse. The Muse device for example is sold as a meditation tool together with a mobile application that gives one auditory feedback of one's state of mind, giving us indications of when we are calm or mind wandering and more anxious.  (A person using Muse for meditation, image taken from link) Upon a review of the recent academic literature on the subject, on can find multiple studies that validate the use of portable EEG for various purposes. Recent advances in the area include the creation of Neuralink, a brain electrode firm by entrepreneur Elon Musk, that seeks to develop BCI. Also, Facebook has recently started developing in the area, focusing on BCI for typing and skin hearing. An area that is experimenting with BCI is virtual reality (VR), where people are working on controlling VR settings with the mind. The precision of these devices is growing, to the point that low-cost EEG can now be used to reconstruct images of what you see. References Churchland, P. S., & Sejnowski, T. J. (1988). Perspectives on cognitive neuroscience. Science, 242(4879), 741-745. Kandel, E. R, Schwartz, J. H. & Jessel, T. M. (2001). Principios de Neurociencia. Madrid: McGraw-Hill.

During the beginning of 2019 we met with our ANII project executive to discuss the details related to the funding we obtained from the agency. ANII is the most important institution in Uruguay in terms of research funding and support of innovative projects and startups in the academic-scientific, technological and entrepreneurial fields. We are very happy and grateful that our proposal has been received with enthusiasm. During the end of 2018 and the beginning of 2019 we had been working on the application for funding at this agency within the line “Tools for Innovation”. On May 21st, the ANII evaluation committee approved our project, with a very positive feedback regarding the interest generated and the prospects for future work. Based on our previous work and the private investment with which the initiative already counted, we have been able to make considerable progress in the products we are developing. This new impulse by ANII implies increasing advances and a promising future.