Membrane Potential Imaging in the Nervous System

Dejan Zecevic (b. Belgrade 1948) is a Research Scientist at the Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Yale University School of Medicine. He received the PhD in Biophysics from The University of Belgrade, Serbia and was trained in the laboratory of Dr Lawrence Cohen who initiated the field of voltage-sensitive dye recording. Dejan is the pioneer of intracellular voltage-sensitive dye imaging technique, a unique and a cutting edge technology for monitoring the membrane potential fluctuation in dendritic spines and fine branches. Marco (b. Milan 1970) is first class INSERM researcher (CR1) working at the Grenoble Institute of Neuroscience. He graduated in physics at the University of Genoa and received his PhD in biophysics from the International School for Advanced Studies in Trieste. He worked at the National Institute for Medical Research in London, at Yale University and at the University of Basel. Marco is expert on several optical techniques applied to neurophysiology. Marco and Dejan collaborated for a number of years using voltage-imaging and calcium imaging approaches to study mechanisms underlying synaptic plasticity.

Historical overview and general methods of membrane potential imaging.- Design and use of organic voltage sensitive dyes.- Imaging submillisecond membrane potential changes from individual regions of single axons, dendrites and spines.- Combined voltage and calcium imaging and signal calibration.- Use of fast-responding voltage-sensitive dyes for large-scale recording of neuronal spiking activity with single-cell resolution.- Monitoring integrated activity of individual neurons using FRET-based voltage-sensitive dyes.- Monitoring population membrane potential signals from neocortex.- Monitoring population membrane potential signals during functional development of neuronal circuits in vertebrate embryos.- Imaging the dynamics of mammalian neocortical population activity in-vivo.- Imaging the dynamics of neocortical population activity in behaving and freely moving mammals.- Monitoring membrane voltage using two-photon excitation of fluorescent voltage-sensitive dyes.- Random-access multiphoton microscopy for fast three-dimensional Imaging.- Second harmonic imaging of membrane potential.- Genetically encoded protein sensors of membrane potential