Reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single-cell resolution: from neural decoding to encoding

Abstract As a key pathway for understanding behavior, cognition, and emotion, neural decoding and encoding provide effective tools to bridge the gap between neural mechanisms and imaging recordings, especially at single-cell resolution. While neural decoding aims to establish an interpretable theory...

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Main Authors: Kangchen Li, Huanwei Liang, Jialing Qiu, Xulan Zhang, Bobo Cai, Depeng Wang, Diming Zhang, Bingzhi Lin, Haijun Han, Geng Yang, Zhijing Zhu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-05-01
Series:Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12984-025-01655-3
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author Kangchen Li
Huanwei Liang
Jialing Qiu
Xulan Zhang
Bobo Cai
Depeng Wang
Diming Zhang
Bingzhi Lin
Haijun Han
Geng Yang
Zhijing Zhu
author_facet Kangchen Li
Huanwei Liang
Jialing Qiu
Xulan Zhang
Bobo Cai
Depeng Wang
Diming Zhang
Bingzhi Lin
Haijun Han
Geng Yang
Zhijing Zhu
author_sort Kangchen Li
collection DOAJ
description Abstract As a key pathway for understanding behavior, cognition, and emotion, neural decoding and encoding provide effective tools to bridge the gap between neural mechanisms and imaging recordings, especially at single-cell resolution. While neural decoding aims to establish an interpretable theory of how complex biological behaviors are represented in neural activities, neural encoding focuses on manipulating behaviors through the stimulation of specific neurons. We thoroughly analyze the application of fluorescence imaging techniques, particularly two-photon fluorescence imaging, in decoding neural activities, showcasing the theoretical analysis and technological advancements from imaging recording to behavioral manipulation. For decoding models, we compared linear and nonlinear methods, including independent component analysis, random forests, and support vector machines, highlighting their capabilities to reveal the intricate mapping between neural activity and behavior. By employing synthetic stimuli via optogenetics, fundamental principles of neural encoding are further explored. We elucidate various encoding types based on different stimulus paradigms—quantity encoding, spatial encoding, temporal encoding, and frequency encoding—enhancing our understanding of how the brain represents and processes information. We believe that fluorescence imaging-based neural decoding and encoding techniques have deepened our understanding of the brain, and hold great potential in paving the way for future neuroscience research and clinical applications.
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issn 1743-0003
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher BMC
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series Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation
spelling doaj-art-d4d4b9daf87f400a861975fd436e30a32025-08-20T03:16:50ZengBMCJournal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation1743-00032025-05-0122111510.1186/s12984-025-01655-3Reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single-cell resolution: from neural decoding to encodingKangchen Li0Huanwei Liang1Jialing Qiu2Xulan Zhang3Bobo Cai4Depeng Wang5Diming Zhang6Bingzhi Lin7Haijun Han8Geng Yang9Zhijing Zhu10Key Laboratory of Novel Targets and Drug Study for Neural Repair of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, School of Medicine, Hangzhou City UniversityKey Laboratory of Novel Targets and Drug Study for Neural Repair of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, School of Medicine, Hangzhou City UniversityKey Laboratory of Novel Targets and Drug Study for Neural Repair of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, School of Medicine, Hangzhou City UniversityKey Laboratory of Novel Targets and Drug Study for Neural Repair of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, School of Medicine, Hangzhou City UniversityZhejiang HospitalCollege of Energy and Power Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and AstronauticsResearch Center for Intelligent Sensing Systems, Zhejiang LaboratoryCollege of Energy and Power Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and AstronauticsKey Laboratory of Novel Targets and Drug Study for Neural Repair of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, School of Medicine, Hangzhou City UniversityKey Laboratory of Novel Targets and Drug Study for Neural Repair of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, School of Medicine, Hangzhou City UniversityKey Laboratory of Novel Targets and Drug Study for Neural Repair of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, School of Medicine, Hangzhou City UniversityAbstract As a key pathway for understanding behavior, cognition, and emotion, neural decoding and encoding provide effective tools to bridge the gap between neural mechanisms and imaging recordings, especially at single-cell resolution. While neural decoding aims to establish an interpretable theory of how complex biological behaviors are represented in neural activities, neural encoding focuses on manipulating behaviors through the stimulation of specific neurons. We thoroughly analyze the application of fluorescence imaging techniques, particularly two-photon fluorescence imaging, in decoding neural activities, showcasing the theoretical analysis and technological advancements from imaging recording to behavioral manipulation. For decoding models, we compared linear and nonlinear methods, including independent component analysis, random forests, and support vector machines, highlighting their capabilities to reveal the intricate mapping between neural activity and behavior. By employing synthetic stimuli via optogenetics, fundamental principles of neural encoding are further explored. We elucidate various encoding types based on different stimulus paradigms—quantity encoding, spatial encoding, temporal encoding, and frequency encoding—enhancing our understanding of how the brain represents and processes information. We believe that fluorescence imaging-based neural decoding and encoding techniques have deepened our understanding of the brain, and hold great potential in paving the way for future neuroscience research and clinical applications.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12984-025-01655-3Neural imagingMathematical modelOptogeneticsNeural decodingNeural encoding
spellingShingle Kangchen Li
Huanwei Liang
Jialing Qiu
Xulan Zhang
Bobo Cai
Depeng Wang
Diming Zhang
Bingzhi Lin
Haijun Han
Geng Yang
Zhijing Zhu
Reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single-cell resolution: from neural decoding to encoding
Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation
Neural imaging
Mathematical model
Optogenetics
Neural decoding
Neural encoding
title Reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single-cell resolution: from neural decoding to encoding
title_full Reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single-cell resolution: from neural decoding to encoding
title_fullStr Reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single-cell resolution: from neural decoding to encoding
title_full_unstemmed Reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single-cell resolution: from neural decoding to encoding
title_short Reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single-cell resolution: from neural decoding to encoding
title_sort reveal the mechanism of brain function with fluorescence microscopy at single cell resolution from neural decoding to encoding
topic Neural imaging
Mathematical model
Optogenetics
Neural decoding
Neural encoding
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12984-025-01655-3
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