High-Yield Methods for Accurate Two-Alternative Visual Psychophysics in Head-Fixed Mice

Autor: Christopher P. Burgess, Armin Lak, Nicholas A. Steinmetz, Peter Zatka-Haas, Charu Bai Reddy, Elina A.K. Jacobs, Jennifer F. Linden, Joseph J. Paton, Adam Ranson, Sylvia Schröder, Sofia Soares, Miles J. Wells, Lauren E. Wool, Kenneth D. Harris, Matteo Carandini
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2017
Předmět:
Zdroj: Cell Reports, Vol 20, Iss 10, Pp 2513-2524 (2017)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2211-1247
DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2017.08.047
Popis: Research in neuroscience increasingly relies on the mouse, a mammalian species that affords unparalleled genetic tractability and brain atlases. Here, we introduce high-yield methods for probing mouse visual decisions. Mice are head-fixed, facilitating repeatable visual stimulation, eye tracking, and brain access. They turn a steering wheel to make two alternative choices, forced or unforced. Learning is rapid thanks to intuitive coupling of stimuli to wheel position. The mouse decisions deliver high-quality psychometric curves for detection and discrimination and conform to the predictions of a simple probabilistic observer model. The task is readily paired with two-photon imaging of cortical activity. Optogenetic inactivation reveals that the task requires mice to use their visual cortex. Mice are motivated to perform the task by fluid reward or optogenetic stimulation of dopamine neurons. This stimulation elicits a larger number of trials and faster learning. These methods provide a platform to accurately probe mouse vision and its neural basis.
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