Simultaneous multi-patch-clamp and extracellular-array recordings: Single neuron reflects network activity

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that the membrane potential of a single neuron can reliably reflect the overall network activity, providing a less invasive alternative to large-scale electrode arrays.

Contribution

It introduces a combined multi-patch-clamp and multi-electrode array recording method to show single neurons mirror network dynamics.

Findings

Single neuron membrane potential correlates with network activity.

Neuronal bursts have a cooperative origin.

Single neuron recordings can replace large electrode arrays.

Abstract

The increasing number of recording electrodes enhances the capability of capturing the network's cooperative activity, however, using too many monitors might alter the properties of the measured neural network and induce noise. Using a technique that merges simultaneous multi-patch-clamp and multi-electrode array recordings of neural networks in-vitro, we show that the membrane potential of a single neuron is a reliable and super-sensitive probe for monitoring such cooperative activities and their detailed rhythms. Specifically, the membrane potential and the spiking activity of a single neuron are either highly correlated or highly anti-correlated with the time-dependent macroscopic activity of the entire network. This surprising observation also sheds light on the cooperative origin of neuronal burst in cultured networks. Our findings present an alternative flexible approach to the technique based on a massive tiling of networks by large-scale arrays of electrodes to monitor their activity.