Elucidating Single-Cell and Network Dynamics in Primary Hippocampal Cultures: Calcium Imaging and Analytic Methods

Author(s):

Alexandra S. Carrizales, Ian M. Berke, Lowella V. Fortuno, Patrick D. Skelton, and Ann Mae DiLeonardi

Abstract:

Calcium imaging has become a popular approach for monitoring the activities of dynamic cellular networks. With recent imaging, molecular, and data processing advancements large calcium imaging datasets can now be analyzed with high throughput. Here, we implement our own approach using chemical and genetic calcium indicators paired with an open-source analysis package. These methods combine and extend previous algorithms for source-separation, calcium spike detection, and network synchronicity; and can be leveraged in a variety of experimental applications.