Chronic macro- and cellular-imaging of brain activity in awake marmosets

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26830060
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Laboratory animal science
• Research Institution: Institute of Physical and Chemical Research
• Principal Investigator: Matsumoto Yoshifumi 国立研究開発法人理化学研究所, 脳科学総合研究センター, 研究員 (60513463)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: マーモセット / ２光子顕微鏡 / カルシウムイメージング

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The common marmoset is an attractive primate. Currently, transgenic animals relative to brain disorders are under development. To investigate the mechanisms underlying brain diseases, ｗe therefore established an experimental methodology to chronically image brain activity in awake marmosets by combining a novel fixation device and habituation training. After identifying the target brain region in the somatosensory cortex by flavoprotein autofluorescent imaging, we expressed a genetically encoded Ca2+ indicator, GCaMP6, by recombinant virus. After acclimation training to the body fixation device, macro-imaging of the GCaMP signal revealed a somatotopic map with a high signal-to-noise ratio that was clearer under the awake compared to the anesthetized state. We next investigated the cellular responses with 2-photon Ca2+ imaging, and again found a remarkable difference between the two states: sensory-evoked activity was much higher in the awake than in the anesthetized state.

Free Research Field

神経科学