title: Selectivity of stimulus induced responses in cultured hippocampal networks on microelectrode arrays.
abstract: Sensory information can be encoded using the average firing rate and spike occurrence times in neuronal network responses to external stimuli. Decoding or retrieving stimulus characteristics from the response pattern generally implies that the corresponding neural network has a selective response to various input signals. The role of various spiking activity characteristics (e.g., spike rate and precise spike timing) for basic information processing was widely investigated on the level of neural populations but gave inconsistent evidence for particular mechanisms. Multisite electrophysiology of cultured neural networks grown on microelectrode arrays is a recently developed tool and currently an active research area. In this study, we analyzed the stimulus responses represented by network-wide bursts evoked from various spatial locations (electrodes). We found that the response characteristics, such as the burst initiation time and the spike rate, can be used to retrieve information about the stimulus location. The best selectivity in the response spiking pattern could be found for a small subpopulation of neurones (electrodes) at relatively short post-stimulus intervals. Such intervals were unique for each culture due to the non-uniform organization of the functional connectivity in the network during spontaneous development.
authors.affiliation: Neuroengineering Laboratory, Translational Technologies Center, Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, Gagarin ave 23, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation 603950.
authors.forename: Alexey
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pimashkin
authors.affiliation: Neuroengineering Laboratory, Translational Technologies Center, Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, Gagarin ave 23, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation 603950 ; Central Research Laboratory, Cell Technology Department, Nizhny Novgorod State Medical Academy, 10/1 Minin and Pozharsky Square, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation 603005.
authors.forename: Arseniy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gladkov
authors.affiliation: Neuroengineering Laboratory, Translational Technologies Center, Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, Gagarin ave 23, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation 603950.
authors.forename: Ekaterina
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Agrba
authors.affiliation: Neuroengineering Laboratory, Translational Technologies Center, Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, Gagarin ave 23, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation 603950 ; Central Research Laboratory, Cell Technology Department, Nizhny Novgorod State Medical Academy, 10/1 Minin and Pozharsky Square, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation 603005.
authors.forename: Irina
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mukhina
authors.affiliation: Neuroengineering Laboratory, Translational Technologies Center, Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod, Gagarin ave 23, Nizhny Novgorod, Russian Federation 603950.
authors.forename: Victor
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Kazantsev
keywords: Brain information decoding; Electrical stimulation in vitro; Hippocampal cultures; Microelectrode array; Neural networks