Project Overview
This Master's thesis research at ICube Laboratory (University of Strasbourg) addresses a critical challenge in neuromedicine: delivering drugs across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) — a natural protective membrane that blocks most therapeutics from reaching the brain.
The solution: a robot-assisted focused ultrasound system that can precisely open the BBB at target sites, allowing magnetic nanoparticles and drugs to enter — all in a minimally invasive, reversible, and repeatable manner.
The Clinical Problem
The BBB is essential for protecting the brain, but it also prevents ~99% of large-molecule drugs from reaching brain tumors, neurodegenerative diseases, and other conditions. Current clinical options are limited:
- Open surgery (highly invasive)
- Systemic chemotherapy (systemically toxic, poor brain penetration)
- No effective non-invasive delivery for most conditions
Focused ultrasound offers a new paradigm: temporary, localized, non-invasive BBB disruption.
Technical Approach
Robotic Trajectory Planning
Developed optimization-based algorithms to compute smooth, collision-free robot end-effector trajectories that:
- Position ultrasound transducers at precise angles for optimal acoustic coupling
- Maintain stable contact despite patient anatomy variability
- Minimize off-target exposure and thermal side effects
Real-Time Control
Built ROS-based control pipelines for:
- Closed-loop ultrasound power and frequency adjustment
- Real-time ultrasound imaging feedback (B-mode and Doppler)
- Safety monitoring and automatic shutoff upon anomaly detection
Validation
Preclinical studies in ex-vivo and in-vivo models, with imaging confirmation of BBB opening and successful nanoparticle extravasation.
Real-World Impact: Therasonic
In 2026, the patent EP4445859A1 (awarded in 2024) was exclusively licensed to Therasonic, a CEA Neurospin spin-off company focused on bringing this technology to clinical practice. As an Engineering Consultant at Therasonic, I continue to contribute to translating this research into a therapeutic system.
Publications
See the Publications page for the peer-reviewed papers from this work:
- CRAS 2023 (controlled acoustic field modeling)
- ISTU 2023 (ultrasound safety and efficacy)
Related Resources
- Patent: EP4445859A1 (Google Patents)
- Blog: "From PhD Thesis to Licensed Technology: How Our Focused-Ultrasound Robot Became Therasonic" (TODO: to be written by Adnan)
- Company: Therasonic (French site; English coming soon)