Long term recordings with microelectrode arrays: Studies of transcription-dependent neuronal plasticity and axonal regeneration

Substrate integrated microelectrode arrays (MEAs) offer an alternative to classical electrophysiological methods like the patch clamp technique for recording the electrical activity from cells and tissue of neuronal or cardiac origin. Since its introduction 30 years ago, this technology has made possible the repeated simultaneous recording from multiple sites in a non-invasive manner. The MEA technology can be applied to any electrogenic cells or tissue (i.e., central and peripheral neurons, heart cells, and muscle cells), either as cultures or acute cell or slice preparations. The combination of culture techniques and MEAs offers the possibility to monitor the activity of a designed specimen over extended periods of time, up to several months. Furthermore, recording the electrical activity of distributed regions of a preparation yields information on spatial effects that might go undetected with other recording methods. Development, plasticity, and regeneration are examples of applications that could especially benefit from long term monitoring of neuronal activity, as they concern processes that develop over extended periods of time. Here we highlight recent MEA studies on signal regulation of neuronal network behavior and axonal regeneration. We illustrate the use of MEAs to study long term potentiation (LTP) and summarize the advantages of MEA technology over traditional electrophysiological methods for studies aimed at understanding the transcription-dependent late phase of plasticity.