Genetically encoded voltage indicators for large scale cortical imaging come of age. (August 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Knöpfel, Thomas; Gallero-Salas, Yasir; Song, Chenchen
• Is Part Of: Current opinion in chemical biology. Volume 27(2015)
• Page Start: 75
• Page End: 83
• Publication Date: 2015-08
• Subjects: Bioorganic chemistry -- Periodicals; Biology -- Periodicals; Biochemistry -- Periodicals; Clinical biochemistry -- Periodicals; Biochemistry -- Periodicals; Chimie bio-organique -- Périodiques; Biologie -- Périodiques; 572.05
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2015.06.006
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1367-5931

Abstract

Highlights: Genetically encoded voltage indicators (GEVIs) come of age. GEVIs overcome limitations of current voltage sensitive dyes. Two main classes of GEVIs have been developed over recent years. GEVIs are now used in physiological experiments in awake mice. Abstract : Electrical signals are fundamental to cellular sensing, communication and motility. In the nervous system, information is represented as receptor, synaptic and action potentials. Understanding how brain functions emerge from these electrical signals is one of the ultimate challenges in neuroscience and requires a methodology to monitor membrane voltage transients from large numbers of cells at high spatio-temporal resolution. Optical voltage imaging holds longstanding promises to achieve this, and has gained a fresh powerful momentum with the development of genetically encoded voltage indicators (GEVIs). With a focus on neuroimaging studies on intact mouse brains, we highlight recent advances in this field.