Anesthetics, commonly used in preclinical and fundamental scientific research, have a depressive influence on the metabolic, neuronal, and vascular functions of the brain and can adversely influence neurophysiological results. The use of awake animals for research studies is advantageous but poses the major challenge of keeping the animals calm and stationary to minimize motion artifacts throughout data acquisition. Awake imaging in smaller-sized rodents (e.g., mice) is very common but remains scant in rats as rats are bigger, stronger, and have a greater tendency to oppose movement restraints and head fixation over the long durations required for imaging. A new model of neuroimaging of awake, head-fixed rats using customized hand-sewn slings, 3D-printed head implants, head caps, and a headframe is described. The results acquired following a single trial of single-whisker stimulation suggest an increase in the intensity of the evoked functional response. The acquisition of the evoked functional response from awake, head-fixed rats is faster than that from anesthetized rats, reliable, reproducible, and can be used for repeated longitudinal studies.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.3791/64324 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Protocol for in vivo recording of neural activity in deep structures of mice brain via gradient lenses by calcium imaging.
STAR Protoc
December 2024
IGF, CNRS, 34090 Montpellier, France. Electronic address:
Calcium (Ca) imaging is a viable approach for imaging neuronal activity patterns in local brain circuits in living animals. Here, we present a protocol for gradient lens implantation in deep brain structures followed by in vivo Ca imaging. We describe in detail the steps for surgery preparation, followed by lens implantation, setup for awake head-fixed imaging, and the recording process.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTargeting Na,K-ATPase-Src signaling to normalize cerebral blood flow in a murine model of familial hemiplegic migraine.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab
December 2024
Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark.
Article Synopsis
- - Familial hemiplegic migraine type 2 (FHM2) is associated with mutations in the Na,K-ATPase α isoform, like G301R, which causes issues in blood flow regulation in the brain by affecting Src kinase signaling.
- - In a study with mice carrying the G301R mutation, increased cerebral artery tone and exaggerated responses to stimulation were observed; however, treatment with pNaKtide normalized these issues by targeting the problematic signaling pathway.
- - The treatment with pNaKtide improved cerebral blood flow and neurovascular coupling in the mutant mice, while only slightly affecting blood pressure, indicating it as a promising therapeutic approach for FHM2.
Super-resolution imaging of fast morphological dynamics of neurons in behaving animals.
Nat Methods
January 2025
Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Brain Cognition and Brain-inspired Intelligence Technology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Neurons are best studied in their native states in which their functional and morphological dynamics support animals' natural behaviors. Super-resolution microscopy can potentially reveal these dynamics in higher details but has been challenging in behaving animals due to severe motion artifacts. Here we report multiplexed, line-scanning, structured illumination microscopy, which can tolerate motion of up to 50 μm s while achieving 150-nm and 100-nm lateral resolutions in its linear and nonlinear forms, respectively.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSleep is necessary for experience-dependent sequence plasticity in mouse primary visual cortex.
Sleep
November 2024
Center for Neuroscience Research, Children's National Medical Center, Washington, DC, United States.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how sleep affects the consolidation of sequence-specific learning in the primary visual cortex of mice.
- Researchers conducted experiments by recording visual responses in mice that were exposed to repeated visual sequences to assess the impact of sleep and sleep deprivation.
- Results showed that even brief sleep promotes learning in the visual cortex, and lack of sleep inhibits this process, which can be reversed after subsequent sleep.
Distinct Inhibitory Neurons Differently Shape Neuronal Codes for Sound Intensity in the Auditory Cortex.
J Neurosci
January 2025
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
Cortical circuits contain multiple types of inhibitory neurons which shape how information is processed within neuronal networks. Here, we asked whether somatostatin-expressing (SST) and vasoactive intestinal peptide-expressing (VIP) inhibitory neurons have distinct effects on population neuronal responses to noise bursts of varying intensities. We optogenetically stimulated SST or VIP neurons while simultaneously measuring the calcium responses of populations of hundreds of neurons in the auditory cortex (AC) of male and female awake, head-fixed mice to sounds.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!