Tracking neurons across days with high-density probes

Neural activity spans multiple time scales, from milliseconds to months. Its evolution can be recorded with chronic high-density arrays such as Neuropixels probes, which can measure each spike at tens of sites and record hundreds of neurons. These probes produce vast amounts of data that require different approaches for tracking neurons across recordings. Here, to meet this need, we developed UnitMatch, a pipeline that operates after spike sorting, based only on each unit's average spike waveform. We tested UnitMatch in Neuropixels recordings from the mouse brain, where it tracked neurons across weeks. Across the brain, neurons had distinctive inter-spike interval distributions. Their correlations with other neurons remained stable over weeks. In the visual cortex, the neurons' selectivity for visual stimuli remained similarly stable. In the striatum, however, neuronal responses changed across days during learning of a task. UnitMatch is thus a promising tool to reveal both invariance and plasticity in neural activity across days.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Nature Methods
Published
2024-09-27
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41592-024-02440-1
Citations
30
Primary Topic
Neural dynamics and brain function
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
9.94

Funders

Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Tracking neurons across days with high-density probes

Philip Coen, Flóra Takács, Célian Bimbard, Enny H. van Beest et al.
30 citations
Nature Methods
Neural dynamics and brain function
9.94
article

Tracking neurons across days with high-density probes

Philip Coen, Flóra Takács, Célian Bimbard, Enny H. van Beest, Matteo Carandini, Julie MJ Fabre, Kenneth D M Harris, Anna Lebedeva, Sam W Dodgson
article en
30 citations

Abstract

Neural activity spans multiple time scales, from milliseconds to months. Its evolution can be recorded with chronic high-density arrays such as Neuropixels probes, which can measure each spike at tens of sites and record hundreds of neurons. These probes produce vast amounts of data that require different approaches for tracking neurons across recordings. Here, to meet this need, we developed UnitMatch, a pipeline that operates after spike sorting, based only on each unit's average spike waveform. We tested UnitMatch in Neuropixels recordings from the mouse brain, where it tracked neurons across weeks. Across the brain, neurons had distinctive inter-spike interval distributions. Their correlations with other neurons remained stable over weeks. In the visual cortex, the neurons' selectivity for visual stimuli remained similarly stable. In the striatum, however, neuronal responses changed across days during learning of a task. UnitMatch is thus a promising tool to reveal both invariance and plasticity in neural activity across days.

Nature MethodsVol. 22(4)
Sainsbury Laboratory (GB), London Chest Hospital (GB), UK Dementia Research Institute (GB), National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (GB), University College London (GB)
GlaxoSmithKline, European Molecular Biology Organization, Wellcome, Wellcome Trust, European Commission, National Institutes of Health, Directorate for Biological Sciences, Horizon 2020 Framework Programme, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council
Openalex Percentile: Top 1%
Neural dynamics and brain function
9.94
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.