It is time for a new edition of our monthly blog. In the August edition during the summer holidays, we highlight the latest developments on CMOS-based MEA technology. CMOS-based MEAs are used for detailed investigations of neuronal electrical activity at network and single-cell levels and to evaluate the effect of drugs on neuronal physiological activity. Therefore, for this Monthly Must-Reads edition, we decided to highlight the article written by Yuan X et al., in which switch-matrix (SM) and active-pixel-sensors (APS) technologies are combined to obtain a new dual-mode (DM) MEA featuring full-frame readouts with 19,584 recording sites and high-signal-to-noise readouts with 246 channels.

Extracellular Recording of Entire Neural Networks Using a Dual-Mode Microelectrode Array With 19 584 Electrodes and High SNR.
by Xinyue Yuan, Andreas Hierlemann and Urs Frey. IEEE Explore. March 2021.

Yuan X et al. demonstrate the versatility of dual-mode MEA technology in recording neuronal physiological activity across 2D and 3D biological preparations, including primary rodent neurons, acute hippocampal and cerebellar brain slices, acute retina preparation including light responses, iPSC-derived neuronal spheroids, and iPSC-derived neurons. Furthermore, the authors present results from more than 1000 individual neurons from primary cultures, including the functional and morphological characterization of their axonal arbors. Finally, the authors report a multi-parametric study of in vitro neuronal development, including network functional connectivity metrics and single-neuron waveform features.

Read the paper here. You can also read our blog article about this publication under this link.

Although we decided to highlight the article by Yuan et al., we selected four scientific articles that delve into the topic of the latest developments on CMOS-based MEA technology. These can be found below:

  1. The Design of a CMOS Nanoelectrode Array With 4096 Current-Clamp/Voltage-Clamp Amplifiers for Intracellular Recording/Stimulation of Mammalian Neurons.
    by  Jeffrey Abbott, Tianyang Ye, Keith Krenek, Ling Qin, Youbin Kim, Wenxuan Wu, Rona S. Gertner, Hongkun Park and Donhee Ham. IEEE Explore. July 2020.
    Read the paper here.
  2. A magnetically actuated microrobot for targeted neural cell delivery and selective connection of neural networks.
    by Eunhee Kim, Sungwoong Jeon, Hyun-Kyu An, Mehrnoosh Kianpour, Seong-Woon Yu, Jin-young Kim, Jong-Cheol Rah and Hongsoo Choi. Science Advances. September 2020.
    Read the paper here.
  3. High-Density and Large-Scale MEA System Featuring 236,880 Electrodes at 11.72μm Pitch for Neuronal Network Analysis.
    by Yuri Kato, Yoshihisa Matoba, Katsumi Honda, Koji Ogawa, Kan Shimizu, Masataka Maehara, Atsushi Fujiwara, Aoi Odawara, Chigusa Yamane, Naohiko Kimizuka, Jun Ogi, Tadayuki Taura, Ikuro Suzuki and Yusuke Oike. IEEE Explore. August 2020.
    Read the paper here. 
  4. High-Density Electrical Recording and Impedance Imaging With a Multi-Modal CMOS Multi-Electrode Array Chip.
    by Beatrice Miccoli, Carolina Mora Lopez, Erkuden Goikoetxea, Jan Putzeys, Makrina Sekeri, Olga Krylychkina, Shuo-Wen Chang, Andrea Firrincieli, Alexandru Andrei, Veerle Reumers and Dries Braeken. Frontiers in Neuroscience. June 2019.
    Read the paper here.