Changing dynamics of spontaneous waves during retinal development: a novel panretinal perspective achieved with the Active Pixel Sensor (APS) 4,096 electrodes array

The developing retina exhibits spontaneous waves of activity spreading across the ganglion cell layer. These waves are present only during a limited perinatal period, and they are known to play important roles during the wiring of visual connections. Using the APS MEA devices consisting of 4,096 electrodes recording at near cellular resolution, we have been able to achieve panretinal recordings of retinal waves in the neonatal mouse retina. We found that the spatiotemporal patterns of the waves undergo profound developmental changes as retinal synaptic networks mature, switching from slow random events propagating over large retinal areas to faster, spatially more restricted events, following several clear repetitive, non-random propagation patterns.This novel panretinal perspective of wave dynamics provides new clues about the role played by retinal waves during visual map formation.