Adapting Standard Fast-Scan Cyclic Voltammetry Protocols & Sensors for Chronic Biochemical Measurements & In Vivo Applications

There is a great need in neuroscience to better understand biochemical signaling in the brain. Fluctuation in this signaling can lean to numerous neurological disorders including neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson's disease, and neuropsychiatric disorders, such as addiction. The brain is an extremely complex organ with numerous pathways and signaling molecules that regulate everything from learning to memory, sleep, emotion, risk assessment, reward etc. In damaged signaling pathways, these signaling molecules cannot perform as they would in healthy tissue, producing a wide range of symptoms that reduce the quality of life. This work has identified opportunities to adapt an existing in vivo technology to be better-suited for observing biochemical signaling in the brain during more realistic behavioral paradigms and with larger animal models. This ability would enable better longterm study of biochemical signaling during behavioral and pharmacological challenges and the extension of these studies to larger animal models.;Fast-Scan Cyclic Voltammetry (FSCV) at carbon-fiber microelectrodes (CFMs) is a proven in vivo technology capable of making electroanalytical measurements of biochemical signaling in the brain of behaving animals. It was initially developed for use in acute, narrowly defined research studies. However, recent advances in science and technology have permitted the development of wireless systems that can make chronic FSCV-based biochemical measurements in large or behaving animal models. Because the technology was created for use in acute experimentation, the measurement protocols were developed without consideration for various engineering parameters, such as power consumption or data transfer rates, and the sensors were developed without consideration for long-term use. Thus, transitioning FSCV techniques to chronic applications has been limited by both the measurement protocol and the robustness of the sensor.;In an effort to transition the FSCV technology to chronic applications and less rigid behavioral paradigms, this research is focused on 1) adapting FSCV protocols to improve performance in chronic applications while evaluating the effects on the density of collected data and 2) improving the sensor to provide the necessary strength and flexibility for longterm in vivo measurements.