Acute head-fixed recordings in awake mice with multiple Neuropixels probes.

Multi-electrode arrays such as Neuropixels probes enable electrophysiological recordings from large populations of single neurons with high temporal resolution. By using such probes, the activity from functionally interacting, yet distinct, brain regions can be measured simultaneously by inserting multiple probes into the same subject. However, the use of multiple probes in small animals such as mice requires the removal of a sizable fraction of the skull, while also minimizing tissue damage and keeping the brain stable during the recordings. Here, we describe a step-by-step process designed to facilitate reliable recordings from up to six Neuropixels probes simultaneously in awake, head-fixed mice. The procedure involves four stages: the implantation of a headframe and a removable glass coverslip, the precise positioning of the Neuropixels probes at targeted points on the brain surface, the placement of a perforated plastic imaging window and the insertion of the probes into the brain of an awake mouse. The approach provides access to multiple brain regions and has been successfully applied across hundreds of mice. The procedure has been optimized for dense recordings from the mouse visual system, but it can be adapted for alternative recording configurations to target multiple probes in other brain areas. The protocol is suitable for users with experience in stereotaxic surgery in mice.

Analysis of glycolytic enzyme co-localization in Drosophila flight muscle.

In Drosophila flight muscles, glycolytic enzymes are co-localized along sarcomeres at M-lines and Z-discs and co-localization is required for normal flight. We have extended our analysis of this phenomenon to include a set of six glycolytic enzymes that catalyze consecutive reactions along the glycolytic pathway: aldolase, glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), triose phosphate isomerase, phosphoglycerate kinase and phosphoglycerol mutase (PGLYM). Each of these enzymes has an identical pattern of localization. In mutants null for GPDH, localization of none of the other enzymes occurs and therefore is interdependent. In optimally fixed preparations of myofibrils, accumulation of the enzymes at M-lines is much greater than at Z-discs. However, localization at M-lines is more labile, as shown by loss of localization when fixation is delayed. We have begun to analyze the protein-protein interaction involved in glycolytic enzyme co-localization using the yeast two-hybrid system. We have identified two pair-wise interactions. One is between GPDH and GAPDH and another is between GPDH and PGLYM.