Brain functional imaging with light

In the 21st century, one of the grand challenges in science is to understand how a brain functions. Similar to a computer, a functional brain is composed of hardware and software. The major bottleneck lies in the difficulty to directly observe the brain “software”, i.e. the rule and operating information used by the brain, that might emerge from pan-neuron/synapse connectome. Technically, there is no existing tool that allows observation of dynamic responses of every neuron in a living brain. Our strategy for probing whole-brain functional connectome is to combine small model animal with optical microscopy that offers sub-cellular resolution. In this talk, I share our recent progress in enhancing 3D imaging speed of two-photon microscopy, which concurrently provides millimeter tissue penetration, toward the observation of functional connection maps in a living Drosophila.