High-speed mapping of synaptic connectivity using photostimulation in Channelrhodopsin-2 transgenic mice.
To permit rapid optical control of brain activity, we have engineered multiple lines of transgenic mice that express the light-activated cation channel Channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) in subsets of neurons. Illumination of ChR2-positive neurons in brain slices produced photocurrents that generated action potentials within milliseconds and with precisely timed latencies. The number of light-evoked action potentials could be controlled by varying either the amplitude or duration of illumination. Furthermore, the frequency of light-evoked action potentials could be precisely controlled up to 30 Hz. Photostimulation also could evoke synaptic transmission between neurons, and, by scanning with a small laser light spot, we were able to map the spatial distribution of synaptic circuits connecting neurons within living cerebral cortex. We conclude that ChR2 is a genetically based photostimulation technology that permits analysis of neural circuits with high spatial and temporal resolution in transgenic mammals.
Wang
H
H
Department of Neurobiology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
Peca
J
J
Matsuzaki
M
M
Matsuzaki
K
K
Noguchi
J
J
Qiu
L
L
Wang
D
D
Zhang
F
F
Boyden
E
E
Deisseroth
K
K
Kasai
H
H
Hall
W C
WC
Feng
G
G
Augustine
G J
GJ
D000200:Action Potentials; D000818:Animals; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000502:physiology*; D051379:Mice; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012243:Rhodopsin / Q000502:physiology*; D009435:Synaptic Transmission / Q000502:physiology*
D007473:Ion Channels; D012243:Rhodopsin