High-resolution intracellular recordings using a real-time computational model of the electrode

TL;DR

This paper presents Active Electrode Compensation (AEC), a real-time digital modeling technique that improves intracellular recording accuracy, especially in high-resistance electrodes, enabling better characterization of fast neuronal phenomena.

Contribution

The paper introduces a novel real-time digital model-based method, AEC, for compensating electrode effects during intracellular recordings, enhancing accuracy and high-frequency measurement capabilities.

Findings

AEC improves recording accuracy compared to traditional methods.

AEC enables high-frequency recordings in challenging conditions.

AEC allows characterization of fast neuronal phenomena in vivo and in vitro.

Abstract

Intracellular recordings of neuronal membrane potential are a central tool in neurophysiology. In many situations, especially in vivo, the traditional limitation of such recordings is the high electrode resistance, which may cause significant measurement errors. We introduce a computer-aided technique, Active Electrode Compensation (AEC), based on a digital model of the electrode interfaced in real time with the electrophysiological setup. The characteristics of this model are first estimated using white noise current injection. The electrode and membrane contribution are digitally separated, and the recording is then made by online subtraction of the electrode contribution. Tests comparing AEC to other techniques demonstrate that it yields recordings with improved accuracy. It enables high-frequency recordings in demanding conditions, such as injection of conductance noise in dynamic-clamp mode, not feasible with a single high resistance electrode until now. AEC should be particularly useful to characterize fast phenomena in neurons, in vivo and in vitro.