Optogenetic patterning of whisker-barrel cortical system in transgenic rat expressing channelrhodopsin-2.
The rodent whisker-barrel system has been an ideal model for studying somatosensory representations in the cortex. However, it remains a challenge to experimentally stimulate whiskers with a given pattern under spatiotemporal precision. Recently the optogenetic manipulation of neuronal activity has made possible the analysis of the neuronal network with precise spatiotemporal resolution. Here we identified the selective expression of channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2), an algal light-driven cation channel, in the large mechanoreceptive neurons in the trigeminal ganglion (TG) as well as their peripheral nerve endings innervating the whisker follicles of a transgenic rat. The spatiotemporal pattern of whisker irradiation thus produced a barrel-cortical response with a specific spatiotemporal pattern as evidenced by electrophysiological and functional MRI (fMRI) studies. Our methods of generating an optogenetic tactile pattern (OTP) can be expected to facilitate studies on how the spatiotemporal pattern of touch is represented in the somatosensory cortex, as Hubel and Wiesel did in the visual cortex.
Department of Developmental Biology and Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Sendai, Japan; Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Core Research of Evolutional Science & Technology (CREST), Tokyo, Japan.
Tatsuya
T
Honjoh
Department of Developmental Biology and Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Sendai, Japan; Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Core Research of Evolutional Science & Technology (CREST), Tokyo, Japan.
Zhi-Gang
ZG
Ji
Department of Developmental Biology and Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Sendai, Japan; Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Core Research of Evolutional Science & Technology (CREST), Tokyo, Japan.
Yukinobu
Y
Yokoyama
Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
Akira
A
Sumiyoshi
Department of Developmental Biology and Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Sendai, Japan.
Yuma
Y
Shibuya
Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Core Research of Evolutional Science & Technology (CREST), Tokyo, Japan; Department of Physiology, Tohoku University, Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan.
Yoshiya
Y
Matsuzaka
Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
Ryuta
R
Kawashima
Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Core Research of Evolutional Science & Technology (CREST), Tokyo, Japan; Department of Physiology, Tohoku University, Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan; Center for Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan.
Hajime
H
Mushiake
Department of Developmental Biology and Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Sendai, Japan; Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Core Research of Evolutional Science & Technology (CREST), Tokyo, Japan.
Toru
T
Ishizuka
Department of Developmental Biology and Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Sendai, Japan; Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Core Research of Evolutional Science & Technology (CREST), Tokyo, Japan; Center for Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan.
Hiromu
H
Yawo
D000818:Animals; D000075402:Channelrhodopsins; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D062308:Optogenetics; D051381:Rats; D055647:Rats, Transgenic
D000075402:Channelrhodopsins