Studying brain functions with mesoscopic measurements: Advances in electrocorticography for non-human primates

Our brain is organized in a modular structure. Information in different modalities is processed within distinct cortical areas. However, individual cortical areas cannot enable complex cognitive functions without interacting with other cortical areas. Electrocorticography (ECoG) has recently become an important tool for studying global network activity across cortical areas in animal models. With stable recordings of electrical field potentials from multiple cortical areas, ECoG provides an opportunity to systematically study large-scale cortical activity at a mesoscopic spatiotemporal resolution under various experimental conditions. Recent developments in thin, flexible ECoG electrodes permit recording field potentials from not only gyral but intrasulcal cortical surfaces. Our review here focuses on the recent advances of ECoG applications to non-human primates.