{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T04:33:11Z","timestamp":1787027591420,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,16]],"date-time":"2025-12-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1765843200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"European Union and UEFISCDI","award":["101112347"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101112347"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Bioengineering"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The development of implantable neural interfaces is essential for enabling bidirectional communication between the nervous system and prosthetic devices, yet their evaluation still relies primarily on in vivo models which are costly, variable, and ethically constrained. Here, we report a bio-inspired artificial nerve simulator engineered as a reproducible ex vivo platform for pre-implantation testing of plug-type electrodes. The simulator is fabricated from a conductive hydrogel composite based on reduced graphene oxide (rGO), polyaniline (PANI), agarose, sucrose, and sodium chloride, with embedded conductive channels that replicate the fascicular organization and conductivity of peripheral nerves. The resulting construct exhibits impedance values of ~2.4\u20132.9 k\u03a9 between electrode needles at 1 kHz, closely matching in vivo measurements (~2 k\u03a9) obtained in Sus scrofa domesticus nerve tissue. Its structural and electrical fidelity enables systematic evaluation of electrode\u2013nerve contact properties, signal transmission, and insertion behavior under controlled conditions, while reducing reliance on animal experiments. This bio-inspired simulator offers a scalable and physiologically relevant testbed that bridges materials engineering and translational neuroprosthetics, accelerating the development of next-generation implantable neural interfaces.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/bioengineering12121366","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,16]],"date-time":"2025-12-16T14:36:53Z","timestamp":1765895813000},"page":"1366","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["A Bio-Inspired Artificial Nerve Simulator for Ex Vivo Validation of Implantable Neural Interfaces Equipped with Plug Electrodes"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Daniel Mihai","family":"Teleanu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Medicine and Pharmacy \u201cCarol Davila\u201d, 050474 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0389-0868","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Octavian Narcis","family":"Ionescu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMT Bucharest, 077190 Bucharest, Romania"},{"name":"Petroleum and Gas University from Ploiesti, 100680 Ploiesti, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Carmen Aura","family":"Moldovan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMT Bucharest, 077190 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3637-371X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marian","family":"Ion","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMT Bucharest, 077190 Bucharest, 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Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0540-2132","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Carmen","family":"Mihailescu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMT Bucharest, 077190 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2239-9115","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mihaela","family":"Savin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMT Bucharest, 077190 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Gabriela","family":"Ionescu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Petroleum and Gas University from Ploiesti, 100680 Ploiesti, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Monica","family":"Dascalu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"National University of Science and Technology Politehnica, 061085 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0354-3986","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mark Edward","family":"Pogarasteanu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Medicine and Pharmacy \u201cCarol Davila\u201d, 050474 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5355-5128","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marius","family":"Moga","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Medicine and Pharmacy \u201cCarol Davila\u201d, 050474 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0389-7944","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mirela Petruta","family":"Suchea","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"IMT Bucharest, 077190 Bucharest, Romania"},{"name":"Center of Materials Technology and Photonics, School of Engineering, and Centre for Research 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