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Ann Arbor, MI, 48108-7936
1) Plug and play setup – NeuroNexus designs systems to be enclosed and easy to setup and begin experiments. Because NINDS may have
multiple people doing different types of recordings, it is important to have a simple and uniform system to reduce problems between experiments.
2) Streamlined recording and data analysis properties – because the system is designed to be start to finish, data acquisition, storage and analysis are all included in the package. This increases productivity because experimenters do not need to aquire alternative software and ensure data can move between recording and analysis computers and software. This reduces potential problems such as data loss, file conversion issues and incompatibility.
3) Customizable recording units – Most of the NeuroNexus system remains the same between experiments, however the recording electrodes can be customized or ordered to be specific for each experimenter’s needs. For example some electrodes can record and simultaneously deliver light (for optogenetic experiemtns, or fluid (for example for drug delivery). Electrodes can be made with various lengths, widths, and variable numbers of recording sites – so the system can be used by a variety of experimenters but processing is seamless.
The material or service must be compatible in all aspects (form, fit, and function) with existing systems presently installed. The current equipment includes an airtable and Faraday Cage with small dimensions (3’x3’), and a stereotaxic setup with manipulators, and the new item/service must coordinate, connect, or interface with the existing system by attaching the headstage and recording electrodes to the manipulators on the stereotaxic setup. This is a small space for recording setups and the NeuroNexus system is designed to be small/portable, thus it is ideal to configure in the current space and with equipment NINDS already has.
Although other companies provide the same items individually, having a system comprised of multiple companies makes running experiments, troubleshooting and data analysis much more complicated, thus having all components from the same source is desirable for the lab.
The electrophysiology recording rig offered by NeuroNexus is a system which will enable recording from individual and populations of neurons in the mouse brain. This is a plug and play system which enables researchers in the lab a streamlined and simplified way to perform reproducible and reliable experiments.
Included are: electrode, headstage, amplifier/digitizer, computer, and analysis software. This system is manufactured by NeuroNexus. This system provides all the necessary components for performing these experiments in a streamlined package which can be readily adapted to different experimenters’ needs. This system will enable recording from individual and populations of neurons in a variety of brain regions. Immediate experiments will focus on determining how neurons in the somatosensory (whisker) cortex respond to intact whisker stimulation after loss of one whisker set.
The Functional and Molecular Imaging Section has long been interested in studying brain plasticity (adaptations) in adult animal models of sensory loss. Specifically, NINDS denervates or removes sensation to one whisker set and probes how the intact whisker set is processed in the brain. NINDS has used in vivo fMRI and slice electrophysiology to determine which neurons might underlie the dramatic changes observed in fMRI. NINDS has found certain cells to be important for the brain’s adaptation to sensory loss in slice, but it is important to translate these findings to in vivo – fMRI does not have this single cell resolution. The in vivo electrophysiology rig will allow NINDS to bridge the gap from slice to fMRI. This system is essential to NINDS and the NIH as it will enable the study of how adult animals react to sensory denervation. These findings are most applicable to human responses to amputation, nerve damage or stroke.
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