In this episode, we follow Caenorhabditis elegans into the magnetic field. Researchers have developed an elegant way to measure whole-brain neural activity in freely moving worms using a calcium-sensitive MRI contrast agent — a major step toward non-invasive brain mapping at the organism scale.
We explore:
How a genetically targeted MRI probe was used to detect calcium flux across the entire worm brain
The fusion of genetics, MRI physics, and behavioural tracking
Real-time measurements of brain dynamics during natural behaviour
How this technique opens the door to non-invasive neuroimaging in small model organisms
Implications for understanding how global brain states coordinate behaviour
📖 Based on the research article:
“Functional MRI of brain-wide activity in freely moving C. elegans”
Uday A. Ramalingam, Andrew M. Leifer, et al.
Published in Nature (2024)
🔗 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-08331-x
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