Mehr als ein halbes Jahrzehnt ist vergangen, seit wir den ersten Vielight Neuro auf den Markt gebracht haben, und es ist an der Zeit, die Gründe für sein Design zu überprüfen und zu bekräftigen. Als Pioniere der transkraniell-intranasalen Hirnphotobiomodulationstechnologie gibt es mehrere wichtige Gründe, warum unser neuestes Modell, das Vielight Neuro 3, in der Lage ist, auch in absehbarer Zukunft die höchste Wirksamkeit in Verbindung mit einem benutzerfreundlichen Design zu einem erschwinglichen Preis zu bieten.

• Der intranasale Vorteil
• Die Wahl: Vielight Neuro Headset oder wiederverwendete Helme?
• Ausrichtung auf das Standardmodusnetz
• Die Theorie hinter den Pulsraten
• Validierung durch Forschung

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Der intranasale Vorteil

“Warum die Nase?” – Diesen Satz haben wir schon viel zu oft gehört.

Wir haben die Nase wegen ihrer Lage und Struktur ausgewählt. Die Nase ist ein Einfallstor für die 810nm-Lichtenergie im nahen Infrarot (NIR), um den ventralen Bereich (Unterseite) des Gehirns zu erreichen, der sonst unzugänglich wäre. Die Regionen des Gehirns, die sich auf der Unterseite des Gehirns befinden, spielen eine wichtige Rolle bei emotionalen Reaktionen, Entscheidungsfindung und Selbstkontrolle. Darüber hinaus ist der nasale (olfaktorische) Bereich direkt mit der Gedächtnisverarbeitung (Hippocampus, entorhinaler Kortex) und der Emotionssteuerung (Amygdala) verbunden und ermöglicht den Zugang zu anderen Bereichen des Gehirns (Thalamus).

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Die Wahl: Vielight Neuro Headset oder wiederverwendete Helme?

Es mag verlockend sein, einen Fahrradhelm, einen Hut oder einen Eimer zu nehmen, ihn mit LEDs zu bestücken und ihn ein “Photobiomodulationsgerät für das Gehirn” zu nennen.
Aber haben Sie schon einmal darüber nachgedacht, ob sie wirksam sind?

Nach einem Jahrzehnt Erfahrung als eines der ersten Unternehmen im Bereich der Photobiomodulation des Gehirns haben wir gelernt, dass eine effektive Photobiomodulation des Gehirns nicht so einfach ist. Vor allem, wenn wir ein Gerät anbieten wollen, das auf sichere Weise ein Maximum an Licht in das Gehirn leitet.

Als forschungsorientiertes Unternehmen haben wir festgestellt, dass bei der Maximierung der Wirksamkeit der Photobiomodulation des Gehirns mehrere Schlüsselfaktoren ins Spiel kommen.

     1. Übertragung von NIR-Lichtenergie

NIR-Lichtenergie ist eine Form der elektromagnetischen Strahlung, die aus Teilchen wie Photonen besteht, die wellenartige Eigenschaften haben.

In der Natur kann Lichtenergie die Zellphysiologie eines Organismus beeinflussen, aber wie bringen wir sie richtig an?

Mehrere Eigenschaften der Lichtenergie beeinflussen die Übertragung von NIR-Energie auf das Gehirn.

• Die Lichtenergie wird bei der Ausbreitung über Entfernungen schwächer, weil die inverse square law of light.  
• Lichtenergie wird vom Haar absorbiert.

Angesichts dieser beiden Faktoren sind Helme/Hüte usw. nicht ideal für die Photobiomodulation des Gehirns. Zusätzlich zu dem Energieverlust, der entsteht, wenn das Licht aus dem Helm/der Mütze/dem Hut usw. austritt, werden die Haare zu einer Hemmschwelle, da sie das Restlicht absorbieren, da die schwebenden LEDs keinen Kontakt mit der Haut haben.

Zweitens ist die Positionierung der LEDs für die Wirksamkeit entscheidend. Die LEDs müssen in den Bereichen des Gehirns positioniert werden, die am stärksten betroffen sind. Die Qualität der ausgewählten Stellen in Verbindung mit Leistung und Frequenz ist wichtiger als die bloße Anzahl der wahllos platzierten LEDs, die zu weit von der Kopfhaut entfernt sind.

Schlimmer noch, sie erzeugen und speichern unbrauchbare/unregulierte Wärme und beeinträchtigen den Komfort und die Tragbarkeit, da sie an Steckdosen angeschlossen werden müssen.

Und schließlich fehlt es den “Einheitsgrößen”-Designs an der Anpassungsfähigkeit an unterschiedliche Kopfgrößen. Igitt!

Geben Sie den Neuro

Figure 1. Penetration of NIR energy into a human cadaver using the Vielight Neuro.

Das Vielight Neuro ist für eine maximale Übertragung der Lichtenergie ausgelegt.

Das Headset der Neuro hat einen angeborenen Designvorteil, da die LED-Module der Neuro so konzipiert wurden, dass sie den Kontakt mit der Kopfhaut maximieren. Die mikrochip-gesteuerten LED-Module kontrollieren auch die Wärmeleistung,

Außerdem ist das Neuro-Headset so konzipiert, dass es sich an verschiedene Kopfgrößen und -formen anpassen lässt. Komfort und Effektivität für Ihr wichtigstes Organ – Ihr Gehirn.

     2. LED-Technologie

Ein berühmter Küchenchef sagte einmal: “Es ist ganz einfach: Gute Zutaten ergeben ein gutes Essen. Eine weitere wichtige Zutat (oder ein Faktor) bei der Photobiomodulation des Gehirns ist die Art der verwendeten LED-Technologie. Das Vielight Neuro verwendet mikrochip-geregelte LED-Dioden, die die gewünschte Leistung bei vernachlässigbarer Wärme erzeugen. Dadurch können die LEDs in direktem Kontakt mit der Kopfhautoberfläche stehen, um die Energieübertragung und -durchdringung zu maximieren.

Andererseits ist die Verwendung zahlreicher minderwertiger LEDs kein “Rezept für eine Katastrophe”, sondern für einen Misserfolg, da sie das Fehlen einer Wärmeregulierungstechnologie häufig durch eine geringere Leistungsdichte kompensieren. Bei Vielight kann unsere proprietäre LED-Technologie so viel Energie wie nötig innerhalb sicherer und effizienter Grenzen extrahieren.

     3. Sind mehr LEDs besser?

Nicht unbedingt – erstens müssen die LEDs genügend Energie mit der richtigen Wellenlänge erzeugen, um den Schädel zu durchdringen. Es ist wenig sinnvoll, eine hohe Gesamtleistung zu erzeugen, wenn nichts davon das Gehirn erreicht.

Als Verbraucher sollten Sie sich immer über den Unterschied zwischen Leistungsdichte (mW/cm2) und Gesamtleistung (mW) im Klaren sein. Die Leistungsdichte ist wichtig, nicht die Gesamtleistungsabgabe. Leistungsdichte und Wellenlänge (810 nm) sind die beiden wichtigsten Faktoren, die bestimmen, ob Photonen den Schädel durchdringen und das Gehirn erreichen. Die Gesamtausgangsleistung kann eine irreführende Angabe sein, da sie leicht durch die Verwendung vieler LEDs mit geringer Leistung und schlechter Qualität erreicht werden kann.

Das Sprichwort “Qualität vor Quantität” trifft hier zu!

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Ausrichtung auf das Standardmodusnetz

There are approximately 86 billion neurons in the human brain. That’s a lot of neurons. For reference, there are approximately 200-400 billon stars in our galaxy.  Neurons are highly interconnected – our brain stimulation optimization theory is to pick the most important regions that show the highest interconnectivity. Hence, our research team chose the default mode network (DMN) as the primary target for the Vielight Neuro. Here’s why.

The Vielight Neuro targets the Default Mode Network.

• Why the Default Mode Network?

The general health of the brain is often associated with the health of the default mode network (DMN), often considered the template network of the brain. It is a large-scale brain network primarily composed of the lateral parietal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, medial prefrontal cortex, precuneus and the entorhinal cortex. The DMN is prominent when the brain is in its quiet state of repose.^[1] Several brain diseases, including Alzheimer’s Disease and Parkinson’s Disease has been associated with dysfunctional DMN.^[2]

In a nutshell, the Default Mode Network (DMN) has been linked to the general health of the brain and is involved in various domains of cognitive and social processing. Do you know of a better target for brain photobiomodulation? If so, let us know.

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The Theory behind Pulse Rates

We have found that the pulse rate matters in brain PBM. The brain responds to pulse rate stimulation in specific ways. When we stimulate a healthy brain in gamma (40 Hz), we can elevate the amplitude of gamma and other fast waves in alpha and beta in the brain while reducing those of the slow delta and theta ^[3]. Independent researchers have found success in the use of the Vielight Neuro Gamma for dementia ^[4] , Parkinson’s Disease ^[5] ; and the Vielight Alpha (10 Hz) in traumatic brain injury ^[6] . However, please note that our devices are still general wellness device and not medical devices. We don’t claim efficacy for any indication and can only point towards research already published with our devices. (https://www.vielight.com/de//research)

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Validation via Research

At Vielight, research is in our DNA. We understand the need to validate the engineering theory behind our devices with scientific data. A simple idea like placing LEDs on your head can turn surprisingly complex when taking different parameters into account, like the pulse rate, wavelength and power density to maximize efficacy.

With that in mind, we’ve invested heavily in research and clinical trials over the years. In fact, Vielight devices have the most published research in the field of brain photobiomodulation to date.

For a full list of published research that used our devices: Link

We’re grateful to all the research institutions we’ve collaborated with over the years and look forward to a bright future of discoveries together.

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References

1. Sormaz, Mladen; Murphy, Charlotte; Wang, Hao-Ting; Hymers, Mark; Karapanagiotidis, Theodoros; Poerio, Giulia; Margulies, Daniel S.; Jefferies, Elizabeth; Smallwood, Jonathan (2018). “Default mode network can support the level of detail in experience during active task states”
2. Buckner, R. L.; Andrews-Hanna, J. R.; Schacter, D. L. (2008). “The Brain’s Default Network: Anatomy, Function, and Relevance to Disease”. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.
3. Zomorrodi, R., Loheswaran, G., Pushparaj, A., & Lim, L. (2019). Pulsed Near Infrared Transcranial and Intranasal Photobiomodulation Significantly Modulates Neural Oscillations: a pilot exploratory study. Scientific Reports, 9.
4. Chao LL. Effects of Home Photobiomodulation Treatments on Cognitive and Behavioral Function, Cerebral Perfusion, and Resting-State Functional Connectivity in Patients with Dementia: A Pilot Trial. Photobiomodul Photomed Laser Surg. 2019 Mar;37(3):133-141. doi: 10.1089/photob.2018.4555.
5. Liebert A, Bicknell B, Laakso EL, Heller G, Jalilitabaei P, Tilley S, Mitrofanis J, Kiat H. Improvements in clinical signs of Parkinson’s disease using photobiomodulation: a prospective proof-of-concept study. BMC Neurol. 2021 Jul 2;21(1):256. Doi: 10.1186/s12883-021-02248-y.
6. Chao LL, Barlow C, Karimpoor M, Lim L. Changes in Brain Function and Structure After Self-Administered Home Photobiomodulation Treatment in a Concussion Case. Front Neurol. 2020;11:952. Published 2020 Sep 8. doi:10.3389/fneur.2020.00952

The post Understanding the Vielight Neuro 3 first appeared on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

The post Understanding the Vielight Neuro 3 appeared first on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

Therapeutic Effects of Brain Photobiomodulation

The therapeutic effects of brain photobiomodulation therapy are enhanced oxygenation^[1], brain energy metabolism^[2], neuronal protection^[3] and neurogenesis^[4](production of neurons). Most importantly, these factors can trigger an increase in mental acuity and improvement in brain functions. All these facts point to an affirmative answer to the the question of “can light therapy help the brain?”Above all, tPBM is completely non-invasive, has no significant side effects and dose not employ any artificial chemicals. Furthermore, the light does penetrate deep enough to reach the brain and numerous studies support this as a fact. If you’d like to learn more about the penetration of near infrared light through the skull, you can read this article.

Independent research in the field of brain photobiomodulation using Vielight technology has demonstrated efficacy in a wide range of applications. The following are some examples of such findings. Independent research demonstrated neural oscillation modulation through brain photobiomodulation. Neural oscillations, or brainwaves, are repetitive patterns of neural activity that can be recorded. Neural oscillations can vary depending on the brain state and neural activity.

Moreover, pre-clinical studies by researchers at the University of California San Francisco on dementia patients showed that transcranial PBM can enhance cerebral blood flow and neural connectivity in specific brain regions. Lastly, researchers at the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System are investigating the efficacy of brain photobiomodulation to treat gulf war illness. You can read more ongoing and completed, and published research on this page which has a list of studies with links.

Mechanisms that help to answer the question
of “can light therapy help the brain?”

Figure 1. Mechanism of photobiomodulation therapy in mitochondria^[5]

A) Photobiomodulation stimulates cytochrome c oxidase, which increases ATP synthesis.
This results in the enhancement of neuronal respiration and metabolism.

B) Photobiomodulation dissociates nitric oxide from the center, increasing the proton gradient.
(The proton gradient is a product of the electron transport chain. A higher concentration of protons
outside the inner membrane of the mitochondria than inside the membrane is the driving force
behind ATP synthesis).

Brain Bioenergetics

Brain photobiomodulation has an enhancing effect on neuronal mitochondria without any negative side effects or harmful chemicals. Additionally, brain disorders are commonly caused by mitochondrial dysfunction^[6] because brain tissue is rich in mitochondria^[7].

Results from a study on human neuronal cells (808 nm) reveals that maximum ATP production occurred at 10 minutes post-irradiation.^[8] Also, another study^[9] using phosphorus magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) evaluated the metabolic rate in neurons following transcranial laser therapy (808 nm). Correspondingly, repeated irradiation over 2 weeks showed prolonged beneficial effects and improved cerebral bioenergetics.

Neural Oscillations

The discovery of the effect of brain photobiomodulation PBM on neural activities and brain oscillations is groundbreaking. In this cross-over, double-blind study, the results revealed a significant effect of transcranial near-infrared light (810 nm wavelength) at a 40 Hz pulsing rate. The effects were on the power, functional connectivity and synchronization of endogenous brain activity.

The potential of brain PBM to modulate brain activity opens new opportunities for research and therapy. In a published study, delivering NIR light energy pulsed at 40 Hz to the hubs of the default mode network significantly increases the power of the high oscillatory frequencies of alpha, beta and gamma. Ultimately, this points towards the potential of brain PBM to improve focus and memory encoding.

Cerebral Blood Flow

Blood flow to the brain is vital because neurons need oxygen to function properly. Inadequate blood flow to the brain has been linked to several dysfunctions, such as depression and anxiety. According to pre-clinical findings, tPBM could potentially increase nitric oxide in neurons, which leads to an increase in cerebral blood flow^[10]. Furthermore, in the most recent clinical investigations by the University of Texas, improvement in cerebral oxygenation was found both during and following transcranial laser irradiation.^[11]

Clinical research using Vielight technology by the University of California, San Francisco, on people with dementia has shown that brain photobiomodulation can increase cerebral blood flow. Thus, leading to an overall increase in their cognitive function.

Neuroinflammation

Neuroinflammation is inflammation of brain tissue which is mediated by microglial cells. Thus, microglial cells respond to neuronal damage by releasing pro-inflammatory markers (cytokines). Furthermore, inflammatory cytokines play a role in initiating the inflammatory response. Moreover, dysregulation of proinflammatory cytokines has been linked to depression and other neurological diseases.

In an early study^[12], researchers assessed the anti-inflammatory effects of NIR lasers on the alteration of cerebral interleukins in cryogenic brain injury. Notebly, they found a decreased level at 24 hours compared to 6 hours. In addition, brain photobiomodulation activated cellular immunity via increasing the presence of interleukins in blood cells at 20 days post-stroke.

To sum up, these studies supports the idea that the anti-inflammatory effects of brain PBM may be due to its ability to modulate microglial activity.

Neurogenesis

Increased expression of neurotrophins (proteins inducing survival and development of neurons) may account for observations of stimulation of neurogenesis.^[13] The neurogenesis effects of tPBM was demonstrated in TBI mice models.^[14] In a series of studies, researchers determined the optimal regimen of tPBM (810 nm) for neuroprotection in mice with TBI. As a result, they reported that tPBM sessions, delivered for 1 to 3 consecutive days, notably stimulated neurogenesis.

Conclusion

At this point you hopefully feel more confident in answering the question posed in the subject of this article, “Can light therapy help the brain?”. Considering all the research noted in  this article, the answer seems to be self-evident. Because neural tissues contain large amounts of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase, brain photobiomodulation has great potential. Improving mental acuity through enhanced cerebral metabolic function and blood flow, stimulating neurogenesis and providing neuroprotection are the most important effects of brain PBM therapy.

Figure 2 Beneficial effects of brain photobiomodulation
Source : Mol Neurobiol. 2018 Aug; 55(8): 6601–6636

References

1. Rojas JC, Bruchey AK, Gonzalez-Lima F. Low-level light therapy improves cortical metabolic capacity and memory retention. J Alzheimers Dis. 2012;32(3):741–752
2. Lu Y, Wang R, Dong Y, Tucker D, Zhao N, Ahmed ME, Zhu L, Liu TC-Y, Cohen RM, Zhang Q. Low-level laser therapy for beta amyloid toxicity in rat hippocampus. Neurobiol Aging. 2017;49:165–182
3. Quirk BJ, Torbey M, Buchmann E, Verma S, Whelan HT. Near-infrared photobiomodulation in an animal model of traumatic brain injury: improvements at the behavioral and biochemical levels. Photomed Laser Surg. 2012;30(9):523–529
4. Xuan W, Agrawal T, Huang L, Gupta GK, Hamblin MR. Low-level laser therapy for traumatic brain injury in mice increases brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and synaptogenesis. J Biophotonics. 2015;8(6):502–511
5. Mattson MP, Gleichmann M, Cheng A. Mitochondria in neuroplasticity and neurological disorders. 2008;60(5):748–766.
6. Passarella S, Karu T. Absorption of monochromatic and narrow band radiation in the visible and near IR by both mitochondrial and non-mitochondrial photoacceptors results in photobiomodulation. J Photochem Photobiol B, Biol. 2014;140:344–358
7. Schwarz TL. Mitochondrial trafficking in neurons. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol. 2013;5(6):a011304.
8. Oron U, Ilic S, De Taboada L, Streeter J. Ga-As (808 nm) laser irradiation enhances ATP production in human neuronal cells in culture. Photomed Laser Surg. 2007;25(3):180–182.
9. Mintzopoulos D, Gillis TE, Tedford CE, Kaufman MJ. Effects of Near-Infrared Light on Cerebral Bioenergetics Measured with Phosphorus Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy. Photomed Laser Surg. 2017;35(8):395–400
10. Uozumi Y, Nawashiro H, Sato S, Kawauchi S, Shima K, Kikuchi M. Targeted increase in cerebral blood flow by transcranial near-infrared laser irradiation. Lasers Surg Med. 2010;42(6):566–576.
11. Wang X, Tian F, Reddy DD, Nalawade SS, Barrett DW, Gonzalez-Lima F, Liu H. Up-regulation of cerebral cytochrome-c-oxidase and hemodynamics by transcranial infrared laser stimulation: A broadband near-infrared spectroscopy study. J Cereb Blood Flow Metab. 2017;37(12):3789–3802.
12. Moreira MS, Velasco IT, Ferreira LS, Ariga SKK, Barbeiro DF, Meneguzzo DT, Abatepaulo F, Marques MM. Effect of phototherapy with low intensity laser on local and systemic immunomodulation following focal brain damage in rat. J Photochem Photobiol B, Biol. 2009;97(3):145–151.
13. Telerman A, Lapter S, Sharabi A, Zinger H, Mozes E. Induction of hippocampal neurogenesis by a tolerogenic peptide that ameliorates lupus manifestations. J Neuroimmunol. 2011;232(1):151–157.
14. Xuan W, Vatansever F, Huang L, Wu Q, Xuan Y, Dai T, Ando T, Xu T, Huang Y-Y, Hamblin MR. Transcranial low-level laser therapy improves neurological performance in traumatic brain injury in mice: effect of treatment repetition regimen. PLoS One. 2013;8(1):e53454.

The post Can Light Therapy Help the Brain? first appeared on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

The post Can Light Therapy Help the Brain? appeared first on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

In our attempt to help many interested in the subject of photobiomodulation therapy and the science behind it, we asked two well-respected scientists and researchers to join us. They kindly agreed to participate in a photobiomodulation therapy discussion and even dived into its applications, including transcranial photbiomodulation. They offered their unique takes on this interesting and promising subject matter. To facilitate this discussion, we came up with three very straight-forward questions for them to answer.

Questions:

1: What is photobiomodulation in general, and what is transcranial photobiomodulation specifically?

2: Based on your research work, what do you view as the most promising areas for photobiomodulation applications?

3: Why have you chosen those areas of research, and what could be the potential benefits of photobiomodulation in those areas?

It was our intention to cover the subject of photobiomodulation more holistically and to offer a deeper and wider perspective on it. At the same time we asked our subject matter experts to keep their answers to a more popular format, as much as possible. Thus, the three questions helped us to engage our guests into an intriguing photbiomodulation therapy discussion.

Guests

Our guests for this blog post are Prof. Michael Hamblin, Ph.D and Prof. Jay Sanguinetti, Ph.D. Prof. Hamblin is a retired Principal Investigator at the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, an Associate Professor of Dermatology at Harvard Medical School and a member of the Affiliated Faculty of Harvard-MIT Division of Health Science and Technology. Prof. Sanguinetti is Research Assistant Professor and Head of the NICE lab (Non-Invasive Cognitive Enhancement) at the University of New Mexico. Both guests are talented and prolific researchers with impressive resumes and significant accomplishments.

Perhaps, the generational gap is the major difference between these two men of science. Prof. Hamblin has recently retired after a long and prolific career in science, research and teaching. However, he carries on with his research and continues to add more scientific papers to the body of those numerous which he has already published. On the other hand, Prof. Sangunetti belongs to a younger generation. The body of his research work is growing and gaining momentum and attention. Earlier this year, he gave a presentation at the TEDx Talks.

Now that our guests are introduced, let us get to an exciting photobiomodulation therapy discussion and their thoughts on the subject of what photobiomodualtion is, does and could do in the future.

Michael Hamblin 

Michael Hamblin gets the first go at this. In his answers to our three question, Dr. Hamblin offered the following thoughts and insights based on his long and prolific career as a researcher and scientist.

Brief photobiomodulation history and definition

Photobiomodulation is the broad term applied to the therapeutic use of light at wavelengths and power levels that do not cause any damage to the tissue. In actual fact, the therapeutic benefits of light have been recognized for over one hundred years. In the early 1900s after the invention of the electric light bulb, electric light baths became popular to treat a wide range of diseases. Next came heliotherapy or the therapeutic use of sunlight, and clinics were constructed in mountainous areas to expose people to the sun. In the 1960s with the invention of the laser, low-level laser therapy (LLLT) became the next method to apply light to the body. Since the recent availability of LED devices, these have now become the method of choice to apply photobiomodulation. This shift happened due to the LED’s low cost, safety, and suitability for home use.

Due to the optical properties of tissue, red and near-infrared wavelengths are considered to be optimum for penetration into tissue. Nevertheless, blue, green and yellow light are still being investigated. Scientists are actively investigating the mechanisms of action of photobiomodulation at molecular, cellular, and tissue levels and new discoveries are still being made.

Transcranial Photobiomodulation

Transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) describes the application of light to the head for a diverse range of brain disorders. LEDs are often employed to shine light onto the forehead, where there is no hair. Others use lasers because, they claim, they penetrate better through the scalp and skull. One of the hottest areas of debate is to what extent the light needs to penetrate into the actual brain tissue to be effective and to what extent there is a systemic effect based on light absorption by intervening tissues, or, indeed, by the whole body.

Benefits and application of transcranial photobiomodulation

Photobiomdulation for the brain is the most promising area because it could be beneficial for such a wide range of disorders.

Traumatic Brain Damage

The first group is traumatic brain damage. This can be caused by head injuries, strokes, or brain deprivation of oxygen after a heart attack or perinatal difficulties.

Degenerative Brain Disorders

The second group is degenerative brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s diseases, various forms of dementia, different viral infections, toxicity from chemotherapy or heavy metals.

Psychiatric Disorders

The third group is psychiatric disorders such as major depression, anxiety, insomnia, autism, and addiction.

Cognitive Enhancement

The fourth group is cognitive enhancement for aging individuals and even young healthy persons.

Benefits of Photobiomodulation

The potential benefits of photobiomodulation (PBM) are many and various. PBM has been shown to increase cerebral blood flow and oxygenation, which are decreased in nearly all brain disorders. Moreover, brain mitochondria are stimulated increasing the vital energy source for cells called adenosine triphosphate or ATP. PBM decreases inflammation.

Neuroinflammation is involved in the majority of brain diseases together with oxidative stress, which is also reduced by PBM. PBM increases the formation of new brain cells by stimulating neural stem cells. Furthermore, it can also stimulate the formation of new connections between existing brain cells. Finally, photobiomodulation can help to clear plaques formed from aggregated protein within the brain such as beta amyloid in Alzheimer’s.

Jay Sanguinetti joins us for his take on the subject of photobiomodulation. This is Prof. Sanguinetti’s second appearence on our blog. Originally we interviewed him in March. We called the blog post with our discussion “Jay Sanguinetti’s Research in tPBM, Non-invasive Treatment Modalities and Meditation“. You can read that blog post following this link.

Jay Sanguinetti 

What is photobiomodulation: photophysical and photochemical events

Over the past 40 years, researchers have shown that light in the visible or near infrared spectrum stimulates, regenerates, or heals physiological systems. Non-thermal and non-ionizing light elicits photophysical and photochemical events on biological tissues that have been relatively well-defined. This phenomenon, termed photobiomodulation, has led to therapeutic interventions in many domains. For example, photobiomodulation therapy reduces inflammation, pain perception, and enhances wound healing. Of course, if cells in the body respond positively to light, then cells in the brain may also be influenced by photobiomodulation.

In the past decade, researchers have begun showing that light can penetrate the skull to positively impact brain function. This method is called transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM), and it has exciting possibilities. Thus, tPBM can be used as both a tool to study brain function, as well as a therapeutic intervention for brain diseases.

Photobiomodulation Applications: direction and promise

There are so many interesting directions for photobiomodulation. The therapeutic effects on the body are widespread. One interesting area is sports medicine. Light therapy enhances muscle repair and many athletes are beginning to see benefits of using light to help with recovery. You can image the athlete of the future with a light device at their home to assist in recovery from injury. However, my main interest in photobiomodulation is in brain health. We are facing an epidemic with the aging baby-boomer population. Between now and 2050, there will be almost 30 million “boomers” with Alzheimer’s disease, and we currently have no reliable treatments.

Several interesting studies are suggesting that photobiomodulation may be a potential intervention for this devastating disease. The idea is that near-infrared light (NIR) can stimulate some of the natural healing and regenerating processes in neurons. Furthermore, the same applies to the neuron support cells. Hence, the NIR helps the brain clean out the beta-amyloid plaques, reduces inflammation and helps the brain fight the disease.  This is truly exciting, and I hope to launch my own study with photobiomodulation and Alzheimer’s Disease soon.

Benefits of Photobiomodulation for Mindfulness

Our research focuses on using neurotechnology to enhance mindfulness training. Mindfulness has many health and cognitive benefits. Thus, we hope to find a way to accelerate the acquisition of mindfulness skills, so those health benefits can scale. Furthermore, mindfulness is a powerful intervention for many neurological and psychiatric disorders. For example, mindfulness is a potential intervention for addiction. We are currently working on a paradigm to combine photobiomodulation with mindfulness in order to help patients learn the mindfulness skills quicker. We already know that photobiomodulation can enhance working-memory, and we can learn from previous experiments. If photobiomodulation can help patients learn mindfulness skills quicker with a wearable photobiomodulation technology, then we have the potential to reduce suffering on a large scale. This is truly exciting.

Photobiomodulation is a safe, effective, and relatively inexpensive technology. Many of the diseases of the brain are hard to treat, because the brain is such a complex system. It is also difficult to directly modulate brain function. Photobiomodulation offers a potentially powerful technology to restore brain function and to selectively modulation brain activity. Almost all neurological and psychiatric disorders of the brain involve inflammation. Photobiomodulation may reduce brain inflammation, which means that it could be beneficial for many brain disorders. Importantly, the intervention, using photbiomodulation, can be done at home, which means that the technology could scale easily. This is truly exciting since many of the brain interventions must be applied in a doctor’s office under supervision, which is cost prohibitive for many patients.

In Conclusion

We thought that it would be very fitting to end this blog post with a very brief video clip of an interview with another scientists, Dr. Jeffrey Knight, PhD. In this short video Dr. Knight, a clinical neuropsychologist, speaks about photobiomodulation, its effects and about how to assess the benefits of transcranial photobimodulation. Take a look.

The post Photobiomodulation Therapy Discussion: Opinions from Leading Photobiomodulation Researchers first appeared on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

The post Photobiomodulation Therapy Discussion: Opinions from Leading Photobiomodulation Researchers appeared first on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

Neuroimaging modalities like fMRI have begun to uncover the brain areas that are dysfunctional in disorders like depression. Non-invasive neuromodulation technologies like transcranial photobiomodulation allow us to target those brain areas for new treatments. tPBM is such an easy and cost-effective form of neuromodulation that the technology could be scaled rather quickly.

In late March 2019, we reached out to Prof. Jay Sanguinetti Ph.D. Prof. Sanguinetti’s research focuses on neurocognitive applications for clinical non-invasive treatment and neuroenhancement. Despite his full schedule, he agreed to answer a few questions and elaborate more on his groundbreaking work.

In his answers, Prof. Sanguinetti highlights the opportunities that photobiomodulation (PBM) and, specifically, transcranial photobimodulation (tPBM) present to modern neuroscientists. You will sense considerable potential, hope and pride for his field of research and his work in Sanguinetti’s words. Perhaps, these feelings come through because this researcher’s journey can lead to significant discoveries and advancement of non-invasive treatment modalities. Furthermore, applications for such potential discoveries can be numerous, as you will find out from the interview below.

Non-Invasive Transcranial Photobiomodulation

Q: It looks like your primary interest lies with research in neurocognitive applications. What attracts you to this field, and why do you think it is worth pursuing?

A: My interests are in two broad categories, clinical treatment, and neuroenhancement. Neuroimaging modalities like fMRI have begun to uncover the brain areas that are dysfunctional in disorders like depression. Non-invasive neuromodulation technologies like transcranial photobiomodulation allow us to target those brain areas for new treatments. This is exciting because it gives us a level of specificity that phrenological interventions cannot. I’m also interested in using non-invasive neuromodulation for neuroenhancement. For example, imagine that you could use a simple and safe device that allowed you to learn the piano or how to meditate twice as fast without any side effects. I think that would be worth-while to create something like that!

Importance of Research in Non-invasive Treatment Modalities

Meditators are wearing the Vielight Neuro devices

Q: In one of the descriptions of your interests, you prominently note the factor of non-invasive applications. Why non-invasiveness is so relevant and critical to your research? Why is it so important?

A: Non-invasive neuromodulation means affecting brain activity with a wearable device. That’s in contrast to invasive Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) where a neurosurgeon inserts an electrode directly into the brain. DBS works beautifully for disorders like Parkinson ’s disease and there is some evidence it works for depression and OCD.  Although DBS is highly efficacious, it has a major drawback: It requires brain surgery! So, the major advantage of non-invasive technologies is that they may allow us to gain the power of DBS to treat neurological and psychiatric disease, but without going through the trouble of brain surgery.

Q: You study various forms of non-invasive transcranial brain stimulation. How prominent is transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) with near infrared light (NIR) is in your work? What could you tell us about your research in the field of tPBM? What are the relevant applications for tPBM that you research supports?

A: I am new to the transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) field. I became interested in how various forms of energy – mechanical energy, electromagnetism, light – influence neural activity, and I came across the fascinating field of tPBM. We have now completed a series of experiments using PBM to enhance learning in a healthy population of undergraduate students. Our goal is to use tPBM for neuroenhancement during learning tasks. We predict that tPBM could be used during the acquisition of new skills, to learn new information, or to perform better on tasks that require focused attention.

We chose the Neuro Gamma device because it flickers the light at 40 Hz. Brain oscillations between 25 and 100 Hz are known as gamma oscillations and are related to higher-level cognitive functions like attention. They are proposed to be the neural correlate of consciousness. Currently, it is not known whether the flicker rate of tPBM can directly influence neural oscillations, but there are some promising pilot results that suggest that they might.  Therefore, we selected the Neuro Gamma in an attempt to enhance cognitive performance on a learning task.  If the experiment is successful, then the enhancement could be due to enhancement of cellular function (the basic mechanism of tPBM), due to the influence of neural oscillations, or both.

Q: These days you are conducting a very interesting study involving the military. In this study, you are employing Vielight devices to test their effect on your subjects. What can you tell us today, considering that the study is still ongoing?

A: The overall goal was to enhance learning on a threat-detection task. Participants received tPBM during the learning phase of the task with the hope of enhancing their ability to focus on the task or to learn from the stimulus cues.  Our participants are undergraduate subject at the University of New Mexico, but the project funding comes from the Department of Defense. This is a basic experiment to ask whether tPBM can enhance cognitive performance.  Our results are encouraging so far, but we have not submitted our research for publication so I am unable to divulge too much at this point

We are using a task that Dr. Vince Clark has previously used with another form of non-invasive neuromodulation, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Dr. Clark has previously shown that just 20 minutes of tDCS doubles the learning rate on the threat-detection task. This result has been replicated in his lab and others. Thus, we have a nice baseline and experimental paradigm to compare our tPBM results with.  One nice thing about using this paradigm is that we know how big the effect size is with tDCS. This fact will allow us to directly compare the size of our effect with tPBM.

Researching Effects of Transcranial Photobiomodulation on Meditation

Q: I understand that you are also looking into researching the effect of transcranial PBM on meditation. Can you describe your experience? What are you looking for? What do you think is the future of tPBM in meditation, and improvement on a person’s well-being in general? The latter is the subject to validation studies, of course.

A: Yes, this is a new area and we are actively planning several experiments.  So far, we have used tPBM in pilot experiments, so I am unable to say much.  Given that caveat, we have had several advanced meditators report positive effects with tPBM. The meditators claim that the device helps them to enter a focused, calm, or detached meditation state that is consistent with their practice. Based on these self-reports, we are designing experiments to validate these claims empirically.  If tPBM can help meditators benefit quicker from their practice, there will be many practical applications.

Meditation has many positive benefits, and scientific research supports them, including interventions for neurological and psychiatric disease.  However, it often takes immense effort and practice to reap the benefits of meditation. Thus, tPBM may help meditators experience the benefits of meditation quicker. This factor would lead to positive effects for the regular meditator as well as for the clinical populations.

One interesting thing is that several papers have shown that meditators enhance their gamma brain oscillations (that I discussed above) while they are meditating. In fact, the more someone meditates, the bigger the gamma effect becomes. This may be due to the way meditation enhances the control of attention, or how it generally alters consciousness. Both of which are related to gamma oscillations.

The Neuro Gamma should enhance mindful awareness

Since gamma oscillations are related to meditation and mindfulness, we predict that the Neuro Gamma should enhance mindful awareness. However, gamma oscillations occur in the range of about 25 Hz to 100 Hz or more. Thus, we asked Vielight for a tPBM device that would give us control over the flicker rate. We acquired such a device from Vielight and are currently testing frequencies from 1 Hz to 120 Hz on meditators.  So far, as you may expect, meditators like frequencies above 40 Hz, especially the higher frequencies. This is an exciting area of research, and we hope to validate the self-report claims soon.

Q: What are you next near-term and medium-term plans and hopes for your research in general and PBM research specifically?

A: If the research supports the use of tPBM for clinical applications and neuroenhancement, then I plan to make this a large part of my research agenda. tPBM is such an easy and cost-effective form of neuromodulation that the technology could be scaled rather quickly.  For example, imagine that tPBM could help meditators learn meditation skills quicker. We could use this could as a clinical intervention. We could create a package and give it out to clinics rather easily, which could help reduce suffering on a large scale. However, first things first, – we must do the science to know how effective tPBM combined with meditation is.

The post Jay Sanguinetti’s Research in tPBM, Non-invasive Treatment Modalities and Meditation first appeared on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

The post Jay Sanguinetti’s Research in tPBM, Non-invasive Treatment Modalities and Meditation appeared first on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

Top Biohacker Positions Vielight Neuro as a New Brain-boosting Nootropic

“Photobiomodulation may be the answer that biohackers have been searching for as a technological alternative to smart drugs and nootropics. According to Ben Greenfield, “the use of light to stimulate the brain is effective, significant and without the worries of major side effects.” Greenfield is a world-renowned fitness guru, author, competitive triathlete and trend-setting biohacker and has a lot of experience with PBM and biohacking.

In his latest blog article, Ben Greenfield continues:
“Everyone understands that the brain is the command center of all our functions. We are truly dead only when the brain is dead. We are at our peak when our brain is at its peak. At the elite level of sports performance, the difference between winning and losing depends on the mental state.

Needless to say, success or failure in life is largely contingent upon the quality of one’s cognitive or mental state. Hence, the value of being able to improve brain health and performance, which explains the growing interest in the tools to do this, especially so-called “nootropics”.

So, we experiment with brain exercises, meditation and mindfulness, natural substances such as magic mushrooms and ayahuasca, synthetics such as Modafinil/Provigil, Piracetam/Racetams, along with ADHD medications such as Adderall and Ritalin.

Admittedly, there are reliable cases of these chemical substances helping to enhance mental performance (although controlled empirical studies have questioned these on larger controlled studies). However, all of them have some reported forms of side effects, many quite serious, if consumption is not controlled.

One of my favorite such methods – photobiomodulation for the head.”

Furthermore, Greenfield notes the Vielight Neuro Alpha and Gamma models as the devices that he uses for brain photobiomodulation.

China NeuroConf 2019

At the beginning of January 2019, a small group from our team, led by our founder, Dr. Lew Lim, headed for China. There, in the city of Sanya, the 5th Neurology and Neurosurgery Conference, NeuroConf 2019, took place. Dr. Lim presented his work on the potential of the application of brain photobiomodulation (PBM) in the treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease.

The audience of primarily neurologists, neurosurgeons and neuroscientists, mostly from China, found the presentation interesting and informative. With a deep-rooted history of traditional Chinese medicine, Chinese scientists have a strong interest in leaning on natural medicine. Many locally developed alternative treatment therapies employ herbal and natural remedies. Thus, presenting photobiomodulation as a therapeutic modality for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease was of interest to this group.

As always, Dr. Lim is spreading his passion for non-invasive light therapy and brain photobiomodulation modalities. This was a conference that helped to advance the cause.

Over the years, Chinese and Russian scientists studied the effects of blood photobiomodulation by introducing a laser beam intravenously. Thus, the concept is not completely new to Chinese scientists. However, the application of PBM in the treatment of dementia, and Alzheimer’s in particular, was novel and worthy of attention.

So far, this trip and presentation were only some of the initial steps in introducing Vielight technology to new markets internationally. We have a long road ahead, and we are eager to confront and overcome all the challenges lying before us.

International Brian Stimulation Conference 

In the end of February 2019, a group of Vielighters is going to head to beautiful British Columbia. The reason is the International Brain Stimulation Conference that takes place in Vancouver. With Dr. Lim as their leader, our Vielighters have planned an exciting presentation for the attendees of the conference. The title and the subject of this presentation are “Impactful and Easy Brain Stimulation with Photobiomodulation”.

The Vielight team presentation will take place on Wednesday, February 27, 2019 between 7:30 AM and 8:30 AM. This will be an hour filled with interesting scientific and anecdotal data based on various research, customer feedback and Dr. Lim’s personal experience and technical knowledge.

If you are also planning to attend the International Brain Stimulation Conference in Vancouver this year, do find your way to the Vielight presentation and say hello. You can contact Dr. Mahta Karimpoor at mahta.karimpoor@vielight.com for further information and to register.

Blood Photobiomodulation Developments for 2019

Many of our supporters, customers and advocates are aware of the opportunities and challenges in the space of blood photobiomodulation. Over the last couple of years our focus on brain PBM took precedence inside the Vielight offices. However, we plan that in 2019 we’ll manage to dedicate more time to research and development related to blood PBM.

We are pushing the envelop in PBM research and development. This is what we love to do. However, doing it at the intersection of science, engineering and economics is a challenge that only the most devoted can pass. We trust that we are on the right path, have the appropriate attitude and possess the right knowledge. All those critical success factors make us capable of perseverance.

Our devices, Vielight 633 and Vielight 655, which provide an opportunity to self-administer intranasal systemic photobiomodualtion therapy, are gaining popularity. Furthermore, new research from various sources around the world unlocks support about the benefits of this form of light therapy. Some recent scientific papers present additional data on the applications of blood PBM as an alternative treatment modality for a number of pathologies. They show the diverse range of possible applications from general wellness to very specific health anomalies. We are looking forward to digging deeper into this important and much needed field of PBM.

The post Good Beginning for Our Year of Photobiomodulation 2019 first appeared on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

The post Good Beginning for Our Year of Photobiomodulation 2019 appeared first on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

Photobiomodulation Insights

2018 was another wonderful year for us. Every year, we take another step forward to further our mission of improving human lives with innovation. Some discoveries would not have been possible without the work of certain research collaborators. I would like to briefly acknowledge some of them here.

We obtained strong evidence through electroencefalography, EEG, (by measuring electrical signals) that the human brain responds significantly to the way Vielight delivers photobiomodulation, PBM. Our Neuro Gamma wearable device was put to test in a double-bind study on healthy brains. This study was headed by Dr. Reza Zomorrodi from the Centre of Addiction and Mental Health, University of Toronto. Significant elevation in the power spectrum and connectivity were observed in the alpha, beta and gamma bands, along with suppression in the delta and theta bands. The study is currently being reviewed for publication in a high impact journal.

Moving on, Dr. Linda Chao of the University of California San Francisco replicated the earlier cognitive assessment results in the Saltmarche et al dementia/Alzheimer study in a controlled pilot study. She also observed improved blood perfusion in the default mode network hubs through functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, fMRI, and ASL over 12 weeks. These provided further evidence of the brain’s significant response to the Neuro Gamma photobiomodulating device.

In the world of meditation, Dr. Sanjay Manchanda, Dr. Jay Sanguinetti and Dr. Jeffery Martin, collaborated with us on the use of the prototype of the Neuro Pro device for advanced meditators. The device is capable of inducing any pulse frequency to the brain. We observed rapid entry into desired altered meditative states with induced oscillations specific to the person. We are planning a controlled meditation study (which is inherently challenging) to understand this phenomenon better and allow for easy replication.

Dr. Jay Sanguinetti at the Dr. Vincent Clark lab at the University of New Mexico conducted a controlled study of cognitive performance and observed extraordinary improvement, a large effect size. Dr. Sanguinetti and his team used asynchronous pulsing Neuro Gamma devices. This feature is built in all our commercial units. The researchers discovered that the device has to pulse asynchronously (out-of-phase) to induce improvement in cognitive performance. Currently, we are in the process of finding out why the brain behaves in this way. This study has taught us that there is no standard way of delivering photobiomodulation to the brain and expecting it to work the same way for everyone. We are learning that the frequency and phase synchrony matter a great deal in affecting cognitive performance.

In the field of neurofeedback (NFB), Penijean Gracefire, NFB clinician and innovator, presented Quantitative Electroencephalography or QEEG images on how the dysfunctional brain responds to different pulse frequencies delivered by a Neuro headset. She demonstrated that each individual has his or her own sweet spots for induced oscillation to help with significant brain recovery. It suggests that Vielight photobiomodulation may be of profound help to neurofeedback practitioners seeking quick and effective personalized therapies. We plan on expanding research in this area.

In sports, professional athletes reported greater endurance and recovery during training. They also experienced better on-demand competitive physical and mental performance with Vielight devices. Much research has already been done in the application of PBM for sports, so this is not new. What sets Vielight apart is the effectiveness, portability and ease of use. Clinicians have measured improved oxygenation of the blood cells with the Vielight 655 Prime intranasal PBM device. We plan to research this area further in 2019.

I would like to make a special mention of Dr. Margaret Naeser and Dr. Liisa Laakso, as they continue their clinical research in brain photobiomodulation, incorporating Vielight devices into their research protocols.

What is in store for 2019? We continue to improve on our products and invent new ones to expand on achievable outcomes in the fields of photobiomodulation and phototherapy. I hope that we can have beta versions of our new Neuro Pro headset by the end of 2019. We should also have more data from the various clinical studies that are in progress now. We are particularly excited about the potential outcomes of the studies on Alzheimer’s, cognition, traumatic brain injury, autism, sports performance and meditation. There should be new data that helps to provide deeper explanations of the mechanisms of the effects of photobiomodulation on the brain, blood and other systems.

Lastly, but most importantly, all of us at Vielight would like to thank everyone for your continued support. I expect that some of these discoveries could change in 2019.

The post Photobiomodulation: Insights on Our Journey first appeared on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.

The post Photobiomodulation: Insights on Our Journey appeared first on Vielight Inc - Deutsch.