Intersection of microwire electrodes with proximal CA1 stratum-pyramidale neurons at insertion for multiunit recordings predicted by a 3-D computer model

It is of broad interest in the context of neuronal multiunit extracellular recordings to understand electrode-tissue interactions in order to maximize the number of recordable units and to minimize experimental artifacts due to mechanical tissue alteration. Toward this goal, a computer model of microwire electrode insertion in hippocampus CA1 area was developed, firstly to provide estimates of the number of electrode-neuron intersections affecting recordable (local) neurons and, secondly, to determine optimal insertion/electrode parameters that minimize the number of intersections. The model predicts that in hippocampus CA1 area, using an electrode 50 μm in diameter, only 10% of the recordable neurons (those within 50 μm of the electrode), would remain collision free. Moreover, the model also predicts that inhibitory neurons are less prone to be intersected by the electrode, resulting in a 2 to threefold higher percentage of collision-free interneurons than expected from the relative densities of pyramidal cells and interneurons. Furthermore, the model confirms, in agreement with experimental observations, that electrode tilting with respect to the main neuronal axis increases the number of intact neurons (fourfold for a 50-μm electrode at 45° when compared to 0°, i.e., an insertion normal to the cell body layer).