Ultraflexible electrodes for recording neural activity in the mouse spinal cord during motor behavior

Yu Wu; Benjamin A Temple; Nicole Sevilla; Jiaao Zhang; Hanlin Zhu; Pavlo Zolotavin; Yifu Jin; Daniela Duarte; Elischa Sanders; Eiman Azim; Axel Nimmerjahn; Samuel L Pfaff; Lan Luan; Chong Xie

doi:10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114199

Ultraflexible electrodes for recording neural activity in the mouse spinal cord during motor behavior

Cell Rep. 2024 May 9;43(5):114199. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114199. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Yu Wu¹, Benjamin A Temple², Nicole Sevilla³, Jiaao Zhang¹, Hanlin Zhu¹, Pavlo Zolotavin¹, Yifu Jin¹, Daniela Duarte⁴, Elischa Sanders⁵, Eiman Azim⁵, Axel Nimmerjahn⁴, Samuel L Pfaff⁶, Lan Luan⁷, Chong Xie⁸

Affiliations

¹ Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA; Rice Neuroengineering Initiative, Rice University, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
² Gene Expression Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA; Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.
³ Rice Neuroengineering Initiative, Rice University, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
⁴ Waitt Advanced Biophotonics Center, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.
⁵ Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.
⁶ Gene Expression Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA. Electronic address: pfaff@salk.edu.
⁷ Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA; Rice Neuroengineering Initiative, Rice University, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77030, USA. Electronic address: lan.luan@rice.edu.
⁸ Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA; Rice Neuroengineering Initiative, Rice University, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77030, USA. Electronic address: chong.xie@rice.edu.

PMID: 38728138
DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.114199

Abstract

Implantable electrode arrays are powerful tools for directly interrogating neural circuitry in the brain, but implementing this technology in the spinal cord in behaving animals has been challenging due to the spinal cord's significant motion with respect to the vertebral column during behavior. Consequently, the individual and ensemble activity of spinal neurons processing motor commands remains poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that custom ultraflexible 1-μm-thick polyimide nanoelectronic threads can conduct laminar recordings of many neuronal units within the lumbar spinal cord of unrestrained, freely moving mice. The extracellular action potentials have high signal-to-noise ratio, exhibit well-isolated feature clusters, and reveal diverse patterns of activity during locomotion. Furthermore, chronic recordings demonstrate the stable tracking of single units and their functional tuning over multiple days. This technology provides a path for elucidating how spinal circuits compute motor actions.

Keywords: CP: Neuroscience; freely behaving mice; laminar single; spinal cord; ultraflexible electrodes; unit recordings.

Grants and funding

U19 NS112959/NS/NINDS NIH HHS/United States