Targeted Patching and Dendritic Ca(2+) Imaging in Nonhuman Primate Brain in vivo

Nonhuman primates provide an important model not only for understanding human brain but also for translational research in neurological and psychiatric disorders. However, many high-resolution techniques for recording neural activity in vivo that were initially established for rodents have not been yet applied to the nonhuman primate brain. Here, we introduce a combination of two-photon targeted patching and dendritic Ca(2+) imaging to the neocortex of adult common marmoset, an invaluable primate model for neuroscience research. Using targeted patching, we show both spontaneous and sensory-evoked intracellular dynamics of visually identified neurons in the marmoset cortex. Using two-photon Ca(2+) imaging and intracellular pharmacological manipulation, we report both action-potential-associated global and synaptically-evoked NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor-mediated local Ca(2+) signals in dendrites and spines of the superficial-layer cortical neurons. Therefore, we demonstrate the presence of synaptic Ca(2+) signals in neuronal dendrites in living nonhuman primates. This work represents a proof-of-principle for exploring the primate brain functions in vivo by monitoring neural activity and morphology at a subcellular resolution.