Dr Vini Gautam has already "built a brain" on a chip, now she is trying to figure out how to get that inside a human.
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The ANU researcher leads research to build "nanoscaffoling" that could offer hope to brain damage patients as well as people diagnosed with neurological illnesses including Alzheimer's.
While it may seem like the plot of a science fiction film, her ultimate goal is to create a three dimensional chip which can be surgically implanted at the site of a brain injury to restore lost functions.
She said the first trials on animals may only be a few years away.
ANU researchers, led by Dr Gautam, last year for the first time successfully grew brain cells on a specially-designed semiconductor wafer, which was patterned with tiny wires to provide a scaffold for cell growth.
Dr Guatam collaborates with researchers across physics, chemistry, engineering and neuroscience on the project.
The chip is designed in a specific pattern to facilitate the growth of brain cells where nanowires “act as a scaffold”.
The tiny scaffolds they have created are able to guide damaged neurons to form a specific connection, which in turn could lead to restoration of function.
Neurons are building blocks of the brain which transmit information throughout the body and coordinate all actions.
Dr Guatam and other researchers are now looking at different materials to grow the cells on that could feasibly be transplanted into an animal or human.
They would need a three dimensional, flexible and more bio compatible material which also matches the features of the brain.
The material would then be patterned with the same nanoscale they currently transfer onto the chip.
"Now we know the design of what we need to guide the neurons, the next step is about optimising it further to make connections in a better way," she said.
"We have the optimum design for their configuration so we are looking into it in terms of the optimum material.
"Once we have a three dimensional, flexible nanoscale scaffold then we will be ready to implant them into the brain."
Dr Gautam's work is unique across the world and relies on grants to make progress.
She is one of two Australian scientists to share in the $700,000 Westpac Research Fellowship aimed at early career researchers.
"Theses fellowships are important ... because this research is very ambitious so the more support the faster these things can be achieved," Dr Gautam said.
“It's expensive not just in terms of the consumables and equipment but also because of the time and people required."
