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UCI to participate in sleep apnea study

The departments of Neurology, Biomedical Engineering and the Beckman Laser Institute are collaborating with ISS, Inc. to evaluate new technology for non-invasive brain imaging of patients who suffer from sleep apnea. A clinical trial grant was awarded to ISS by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke to validate the non-invasive near infrared technology, OxiplexTS. The three-year project targets brain oxygenation and brain vascular reactivity during sleep in persons who suffer from Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS).

The project involves a multi-site collaboration with several research centers: the Center of Sleep and Ventilatory Disorders of the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago (Chicago, IL); the Regional Sleep Disorders Center at Carle Foundation Hospital (Urbana, IL); the Sleep Disorders Clinic at Stanford University (Palo Alto, CA); and the Center for Sleep Disorders at the University of California at Irvine (Irvine, CA).

OxiplexTS utilizes near infrared light to probe brain tissue. In order to provide a 3D localization of the brain oxygenation, low intensity light beams are carried to the head by as many as thirty-two distinct fiber optic cables. This technology is based on pioneering work in frequency domain photon migration by 2 NCRR Biomedical Technology Resources in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Beckman Laser Institute at UCI: the Laboratory for Fluorescence Dynamics (LFD) and the Laser Microbeam and Medical Program (LAMMP). Both LFD and LAMMP are partners in these and related studies.

For additional information, contact the Principal Investigator, Antonios Michalos, MD, MS, Director of Medical Research at ISS and Adjunct Senior Research Scientist at the College of Engineering of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, antonios.michalos@iss.com.