Computer Generated Holography with Intensity-Graded Patterns

Recent advances in light patterned optogenetic photostimulation in freely moving mice

Optogenetics opened the door to a new era of neuroscience. New optical developments are under way to enable high-resolution neuronal activity imaging and selective photostimulation of neuronal ensembles in freely moving animals. These advancements could allow researchers to interrogate, with cellular precision, functionally relevant neuronal circuits in the framework of naturalistic brain activity. We provide an overview of the current state-of-the-art of imaging and photostimulation in freely moving rodents and present a road map for future optical and engineering developments toward miniaturized microscopes that could reach beyond the currently existing systems.

Multicolor two-photon light-patterning microscope exploiting the spatio-temporal properties of a fiber bundle

The development of efficient genetically encoded indicators and actuators has opened up the possibility of reading and manipulating neuronal activity in living tissues with light. To achieve precise and reconfigurable targeting of large numbers of neurons with single-cell resolution within arbitrary volumes, different groups have recently developed all-optical strategies based on two-photon excitation and spatio-temporal shaping of ultrashort laser pulses. However, such techniques are often complex to set up and typically operate at a single wavelength only. To address these issues, we have developed a novel optical approach that uses a fiber bundle and a spatial light modulator to achieve simple and dual-color two-photon light patterning in three dimensions. By leveraging the core-to-core temporal delay and the wavelength-independent divergence characteristics of fiber bundles, we have demonstrated the capacity to generate high-resolution excitation spots in a 3D region with two distinct laser wavelengths simultaneously, offering a suitable and simple alternative for precise multicolor cell targeting.

Characterization of retardance spatial variations over the aperture of liquid-crystal variable retarders

We present a comparison of two experimental methods to measure retardance as a function of applied voltage and as a function of position over the aperture of liquid-crystal variable retarders. These measurements are required for many applications, particularly in polarimetry. One method involves the scan of an unexpanded laser beam over the aperture, and the other uses an expanded beam from a LED and a CCD camera to measure the full aperture with a single measurement. The first method is time consuming, is limited in the measured spatial resolution, and requires more expensive equipment to perform the scan, whereas the second method is low cost, with the spatial resolution of the CCD, and fast, but in principle has variations of the incident beam over the aperture that affect the measured retardance values. The results obtained show good agreement for the average values of retardance for the two methods, but the expanded-beam method shows more noise, particularly close to the voltage values at which the variable-retarder retardance versus voltage curves are unwrapped. These retardance variations can be reduced by smoothing the retardance image, which makes the expanded-beam method an attractive method for polarimetry applications since it gives the complete information in the full aperture of the device with the additional advantages of low cost, simplicity, and being less time consuming.

Encoding of arbitrary micrometric complex illumination patterns with reduced speckle

In nonlinear microscopy, phase-only spatial light modulators (SLMs) allow achieving simultaneous two-photon excitation and fluorescence emission from specific region-of-interests (ROIs). However, as iterative Fourier transform algorithms (IFTAs) can only approximate the illumination of selected ROIs, both image formation and/or signal acquisition can be largely affected by the spatial irregularities of the illumination patterns and the speckle noise. To overcome these limitations, we propose an alternative complex illumination method (CIM) able to generate simultaneous excitation of large-area ROIs with full control over the amplitude and phase of light and reduced speckle. As a proof-of-concept we experimentally demonstrate single-photon and second harmonic generation (SHG) with structured illumination over large-area ROIs.

The State of the NIH BRAIN Initiative

The BRAIN Initiative arose from a grand challenge to "accelerate the development and application of new technologies that will enable researchers to produce dynamic pictures of the brain that show how individual brain cells and complex neural circuits interact at the speed of thought." The BRAIN Initiative is a public-private effort focused on the development and use of powerful tools for acquiring fundamental insights about how information processing occurs in the central nervous system (CNS). As the Initiative enters its fifth year, NIH has supported >500 principal investigators, who have answered the Initiative's challenge via hundreds of publications describing novel tools, methods, and discoveries that address the Initiative's seven scientific priorities. We describe scientific advances produced by individual laboratories, multi-investigator teams, and entire consortia that, over the coming decades, will produce more comprehensive and dynamic maps of the brain, deepen our understanding of how circuit activity can produce a rich tapestry of behaviors, and lay the foundation for understanding how its circuitry is disrupted in brain disorders. Much more work remains to bring this vision to fruition, and the National Institutes of Health continues to look to the diverse scientific community, from mathematics, to physics, chemistry, engineering, neuroethics, and neuroscience, to ensure that the greatest scientific benefit arises from this unique research Initiative.

Towards circuit optogenetics

Optogenetics neuronal targeting combined with single-photon wide-field illumination has already proved its enormous potential in neuroscience, enabling the optical control of entire neuronal networks and disentangling their role in the control of specific behaviors. However, establishing how a single or a sub-set of neurons controls a specific behavior, or how functionally identical neurons are connected in a particular task, or yet how behaviors can be modified in real-time by the complex wiring diagram of neuronal connections requires more sophisticated approaches enabling to drive neuronal circuits activity with single-cell precision and millisecond temporal resolution. This has motivated on one side the development of flexible optical methods for two-photon (2P) optogenetic activation using either, or a hybrid of two approaches: scanning and parallel illumination. On the other side, it has stimulated the engineering of new opsins with modified spectral characteristics, channel kinetics and spatial distribution of expression, offering the necessary flexibility of choosing the appropriate opsin for each application. The need for optical manipulation of multiple targets with millisecond temporal resolution has imposed three-dimension (3D) parallel holographic illumination as the technique of choice for optical control of neuronal circuits organized in 3D. Today 3D parallel illumination exists in several complementary variants, each with a different degree of simplicity, light uniformity, temporal precision and axial resolution. In parallel, the possibility to reach hundreds of targets in 3D volumes has prompted the development of low-repetition rate amplified laser sources enabling high peak power, while keeping low average power for stimulating each cell. All together those progresses open the way for a precise optical manipulation of neuronal circuits with unprecedented precision and flexibility.

And Then There Was Light: Perspectives of Optogenetics for Deep Brain Stimulation and Neuromodulation

Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) has evolved into a well-accepted add-on treatment for patients with severe Parkinsons disease as well as for other chronic neurological conditions. The focal action of electrical stimulation can yield better responses and it exposes the patient to fewer side effects compared to pharmaceuticals distributed throughout the body toward the brain. On the other hand, the current practice of DBS is hampered by the relatively coarse level of neuromodulation achieved. Optogenetics, in contrast, offers the perspective of much more selective actions on the various physiological structures, provided that the stimulated cells are rendered sensitive to the action of light. Optogenetics has experienced tremendous progress since its first in vivo applications about 10 years ago. Recent advancements of viral vector technology for gene transfer substantially reduce vector-associated cytotoxicity and immune responses. This brings about the possibility to transfer this technology into the clinic as a possible alternative to DBS and neuromodulation. New paths could be opened toward a rich panel of clinical applications. Some technical issues still limit the long term use in humans but realistic perspectives quickly emerge. Despite a rapid accumulation of observations about patho-physiological mechanisms, it is still mostly serendipity and empiric adjustments that dictate clinical practice while more efficient logically designed interventions remain rather exceptional. Interestingly, it is also very much the neuro technology developed around optogenetics that offers the most promising tools to fill in the existing knowledge gaps about brain function in health and disease. The present review examines Parkinson's disease and refractory epilepsy as use cases for possible optogenetic stimulation therapies.

Temporally precise single-cell-resolution optogenetics

Optogenetic control of individual neurons with high temporal precision within intact mammalian brain circuitry would enable powerful explorations of how neural circuits operate. Two-photon computer-generated holography enables precise sculpting of light and could in principle enable simultaneous illumination of many neurons in a network, with the requisite temporal precision to simulate accurate neural codes. We designed a high-efficacy soma-targeted opsin, finding that fusing the N-terminal 150 residues of kainate receptor subunit 2 (KA2) to the recently discovered high-photocurrent channelrhodopsin CoChR restricted expression of this opsin primarily to the cell body of mammalian cortical neurons. In combination with two-photon holographic stimulation, we found that this somatic CoChR (soCoChR) enabled photostimulation of individual cells in mouse cortical brain slices with single-cell resolution and <1-ms temporal precision. We used soCoChR to perform connectivity mapping on intact cortical circuits.

Temporally precise single-cell-resolution optogenetics

Optogenetic control of individual neurons with high temporal precision within intact mammalian brain circuitry would enable powerful explorations of how neural circuits operate. Two-photon computer-generated holography enables precise sculpting of light and could in principle enable simultaneous illumination of many neurons in a network, with the requisite temporal precision to simulate accurate neural codes. We designed a high-efficacy soma-targeted opsin, finding that fusing the N-terminal 150 residues of kainate receptor subunit 2 (KA2) to the recently discovered high-photocurrent channelrhodopsin CoChR restricted expression of this opsin primarily to the cell body of mammalian cortical neurons. In combination with two-photon holographic stimulation, we found that this somatic CoChR (soCoChR) enabled photostimulation of individual cells in mouse cortical brain slices with single-cell resolution and <1-ms temporal precision. We used soCoChR to perform connectivity mapping on intact cortical circuits.

Imaging membrane potential changes from dendritic spines using computer-generated holography

Electrical properties of neuronal processes are extraordinarily complex, dynamic, and, in the general case, impossible to predict in the absence of detailed measurements. To obtain such a measurement one would, ideally, like to be able to monitor electrical subthreshold events as they travel from synapses on distal dendrites and summate at particular locations to initiate action potentials. It is now possible to carry out these measurements at the scale of individual dendritic spines using voltage imaging. In these measurements, the voltage-sensitive probes can be thought of as transmembrane voltmeters with a linear scale, which directly monitor electrical signals. Grinvald et al. were important early contributors to the methodology of voltage imaging, and they pioneered some of its significant results. We combined voltage imaging and glutamate uncaging using computer-generated holography. The results demonstrated that patterned illumination, by reducing the surface area of illuminated membrane, reduces photodynamic damage. Additionally, region-specific illumination practically eliminated the contamination of optical signals from individual spines by the scattered light from the parent dendrite. Finally, patterned illumination allowed one-photon uncaging of glutamate on multiple spines to be carried out in parallel with voltage imaging from the parent dendrite and neighboring spines.

Vortex-free phase profiles for uniform patterning with computer-generated holography

Computer-generated holography enables efficient light pattern generation through phase-only wavefront modulation. While perfect patterning usually requires control over both phase and amplitude, iterative Fourier transform algorithms (IFTA) can achieve phase-only approximations which maximize light efficiency at the cost of uniformity. The phase being unconstrained in the output plane, it can vary abruptly in some regions leading to destructive interferences. Among such structures phase vortices are the most common. Here we demonstrate theoretically, numerically and experimentally, a novel approach for eliminating phase vortices by spatially filtering the phase input to the IFTA, combining it with phase-based complex amplitude control at the spatial light modulator (SLM) plane to generate smooth shapes. The experimental implementation is achieved performing complex amplitude modulation with a phase-only SLM. This proposed experimental scheme offers a continuous and centered field of excitation. Lastly, we characterize achievable trade-offs between pattern uniformity, diffraction efficiency, and axial confinement.

Two-Photon Holographic Stimulation of ReaChR

Optogenetics provides a unique approach to remotely manipulate brain activity with light. Reaching the degree of spatiotemporal control necessary to dissect the role of individual cells in neuronal networks, some of which reside deep in the brain, requires joint progress in opsin engineering and light sculpting methods. Here we investigate for the first time two-photon stimulation of the red-shifted opsin ReaChR. We use two-photon (2P) holographic illumination to control the activation of individually chosen neurons expressing ReaChR in acute brain slices. We demonstrated reliable action potential generation in ReaChR-expressing neurons and studied holographic 2P-evoked spiking performances depending on illumination power and pulse width using an amplified laser and a standard femtosecond Ti:Sapphire oscillator laser. These findings provide detailed knowledge of ReaChR's behavior under 2P illumination paving the way for achieving in depth remote control of multiple cells with high spatiotemporal resolution deep within scattering tissue.