Investigation of mechanosensation in C. elegans using light field calcium imaging

We describe a new experimental approach to investigate touch sensation in the model organism C. elegans using light field deconvolution microscopy. By combining fast volumetric image acquisition with controlled indentation of the organism using a high sensitivity force transducer, we are able to simultaneously measure activity in multiple touch receptor neurons expressing the calcium ion indicator GCaMP6s. By varying the applied mechanical stimulus we show how this method can be used to quantify touch sensitivity in C. elegans. We describe some of the challenges of performing light field calcium imaging in moving samples and demonstrate that they can be overcome by simple data processing.