Ito Tetsufumi, Hirayama Yosuke
Department of Systems Function and Morphology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Sugitani, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan.
Research Center for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Sugitani, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan.
Anat Sci Int. 2025 Jun 2. doi: 10.1007/s12565-025-00854-1.
In vivo functional imaging is a powerful tool for identifying the functional organization of the cerebral cortex. Flavoprotein autofluorescence imaging detects the metabolic activity of endogenous flavoprotein in neuronal tissue and thus provides an indirect measure of brain activity. As flavoprotein imaging is minimally invasive and does not require expensive equipment or reagents, it is easily combined with tract tracing methods and serves as a valuable approach for investigating functional organization of the brain. This paper provides a step-by-step protocol for flavoprotein imaging to record cortical activity in response to auditory stimuli, along with a method for injecting neuroanatomical tracers into functionally identified cortical regions. Key factors for obtaining reproducible results include stabile head fixation, a controlled dark imaging environment, maintenance of body temperature, and oxygen saturation monitoring.
体内功能成像技术是确定大脑皮质功能组织的有力工具。黄素蛋白自发荧光成像可检测神经元组织中内源性黄素蛋白的代谢活性，从而间接测量大脑活动。由于黄素蛋白成像具有微创性，且无需昂贵的设备或试剂，因此它很容易与神经束追踪方法相结合，成为研究大脑功能组织的一种有价值的方法。本文提供了一份用于黄素蛋白成像以记录听觉刺激引起的皮质活动的分步方案，以及一种将神经解剖示踪剂注入功能确定的皮质区域的方法。获得可重复结果的关键因素包括稳定的头部固定、可控的暗成像环境、体温维持和血氧饱和度监测。
