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Abstract

Calcium imaging using fluorescent reporters is the most widely used optical approach to investigate activity in intact neuronal circuits with single-cell resolution. Calcium signals, however, are often difficult to interpret, especially if the desired output quantity is membrane voltage or instantaneous firing rates. Combining dendritic intracellular electrophysiology and multi-photon calcium imaging in vivo, we recently investigated the relationship between optical signals recorded with the fluorescent calcium indicator Oregon Green BAPTA-1 (OGB-1) and spike output in principal neurons in the locust antennal lobe. We derived from these experiments a simple, empirical and easily adaptable method requiring minimal calibration to reconstruct firing rates from calcium signals with good accuracy and 50-ms temporal resolution.