Precise Neural Stimulation in the Retina Using Focused Ultrasound
Precise Neural Stimulation in the Retina Using Focused Ultrasound
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DOI：
10.1523/jneurosci.3521-12.2013
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发表时间：
2013-03-06
影响因子：
5.3
通讯作者：
Baccus, Stephen A.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Menz, Michael D.;Oralkan, Omer;Baccus, Stephen A.
聚焦超声是一种很有前途的无创神经刺激技术。在这里，我们使用分离的蝾螈视网膜来表征超声对完整神经回路的影响，并将这些影响与视觉刺激相同的视网膜神经节细胞的影响进行比较。来自压电换能器的43 MHz声频和90 μ m焦斑直径的超声刺激引起了稳定的响应，其时间精度等于强烈的视觉响应，但潜伏期更短。通过超声和视觉刺激的结合，我们发现超声刺激可以快速调节视觉灵敏度，但不改变视觉时间滤波。通过将药理学与超声刺激相结合，我们发现超声不能直接激活视网膜神经节细胞，但可以部分激活光感受器以外的中间神经元。这些结果表明，在强局部刺激条件下，时间变异性主要受光感受器以外的细胞影响。我们认为超声刺激是一种有效的、时空精确的激活视网膜的方法。由于视网膜是体内中枢神经系统中最容易接近的部分，因此超声波刺激可能具有诊断潜力，可以在光感受器变性的情况下探测剩余的视网膜功能，并具有用于视网膜假体的治疗潜力。此外，由于其无创特性和时空分辨率，超声神经刺激有望成为了解视网膜中药理学定义的神经通路动态活动的有用工具。
Focused ultrasound is a promising noninvasive technology for neural stimulation. Here we use the isolated salamander retina to characterize the effect of ultrasound on an intact neural circuit and compared these effects with those of visual stimulation of the same retinal ganglion cells. Ultrasound stimuli at an acoustic frequency of 43 MHz and a focal spot diameter of 90 mu m delivered from a piezoelectric transducer evoked stable responses with a temporal precision equal to strong visual responses but with shorter latency. By presenting ultrasound and visual stimulation together, we found that ultrasonic stimulation rapidly modulated visual sensitivity but did not change visual temporal filtering. By combining pharmacology with ultrasound stimulation, we found that ultrasound did not directly activate retinal ganglion cells but did in part activate interneurons beyond photoreceptors. These results suggest that, under conditions of strong localized stimulation, timing variability is largely influenced by cells beyond photoreceptors. We conclude that ultrasonic stimulation is an effective and spatiotemporally precise method to activate the retina. Because the retina is the most accessible part of the CNS in vivo, ultrasonic stimulation may have diagnostic potential to probe remaining retinal function in cases of photoreceptor degeneration, and therapeutic potential for use in a retinal prosthesis. In addition, because of its noninvasive properties and spatiotemporal resolution, ultrasound neurostimulation promises to be a useful tool to understand dynamic activity in pharmacologically defined neural pathways in the retina.