Minimally-invasive brain probe senses a single neuron

At Stanford University, researchers have found a way to record the activity of a single neuron without burrowing into the brain – of a rat in this case.

Developed by Anqi Zhang and colleagues, the key part is a micro-probe that can be threaded through blood vessels as small as 100μm in diameter.

Initially it is housed in a micro-catheter that takes it to where it is needed, after which the mesh-like electrode is pushed out by saline flow though the outer tube.

Local field potentials and single-unit spikes are said by the team to have been selectively achieved in the cortex and olfactory bulb, and both minimal immune response and long-term stability have been reported.

The work is published in Science as ‘Ultraflexible endovascular probes for brain recording through micrometer-scale vasculature‘ – payment required for full access.

Image credit: Anqi Zhang, Stanford University