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All the light that we can see: a new era in miniaturized microscopy

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One major challenge in neuroscience is to uncover how defined neural circuits in the brain encode, store, modify, and retrieve information. Meeting this challenge comprehensively requires tools capable of recording and manipulating the activity of intact neural networks in naturally behaving animals. Head-mounted miniature microscopes are emerging as a key tool to address this challenge. Here we discuss recent work leading to the miniaturization of neural imaging tools, the current state of the art in this field, and the importance and necessity of open-source options. We finish with a discussion on what the future may hold for miniature microscopy.

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Fig. 1: Open-source UCLA Miniscope.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Daniel Aharoni & Peyman Golshani

  2. Departments of Physiology & Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Baljit S. Khakh

  3. Departments of Neurobiology and Psychology, Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Alcino J. Silva

  4. Department of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences, Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Alcino J. Silva & Peyman Golshani

Authors
  1. Daniel Aharoni
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  2. Baljit S. Khakh
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  3. Alcino J. Silva
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  4. Peyman Golshani
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Correspondence to Daniel Aharoni.

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Aharoni, D., Khakh, B.S., Silva, A.J. et al. All the light that we can see: a new era in miniaturized microscopy. Nat Methods 16, 11–13 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41592-018-0266-x

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