Fast Optical Response to Electrical Activation in Peripheral Nerves

摘要

Complex neuronal structures and interactions make studying fast optical signals associated with brain activation difficult, especially in non-invasive measurements that are further complicated by the filtering effect of the scalp and skull. We have chosen to study fast optical signals in the peripheral nervous system to look at a more simplified biological neuronal structure and a system that is more accessible to non-invasive optical studies. In this study, we recorded spatially resolved electrical and optical responses of the human sural nerve to electrical stimulation. A 0.1 ms electrical stimulation was used to activate the sural nerve. Electrical signals were collected by an electromyogram machine and results showed an electrical response spanning a distance of 8 mm across the nerve. Optical signals were collected by a two-wavelength (690 and 830 nm) near-infrared spectrometer and displayed a characteristic decrease in intensity at both wavelengths. Data were taken at multiple positions and then reproduced five times. The average optical data over the five trials showed an optical signal that was spatially consistent with the electrical response to sural nerve stimulation.