Massively parallel recordings in macaque motor cortex during an instructed delayed reach-to-grasp task

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Computational Neuroscience
• Primate Motor Control

Background:

• Electrophysiological recordings are crucial for understanding neural mechanisms of motor control.
• High-density electrode arrays provide detailed neural activity data.
• Accessible datasets with comprehensive metadata facilitate reproducible research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To publish two electrophysiological datasets from macaque motor cortex.
• To provide raw neural signals, sorted units, behavioral data, and metadata.
• To offer data loading and access tools for Python and Matlab users.

Main Methods:

• Chronic implantation of 10-by-10 Utah electrode arrays in motor cortex of two macaque monkeys.
• Recording of neural signals at 30 kHz and local field potentials (LFPs) at 1 kHz.
• Offline sorting of single units (SUA) and multi-unit activity (MUA).
• Structuring of metadata using the odML framework.

Main Results:

• Two comprehensive electrophysiological datasets are made publicly available.
• Datasets include raw neural signals, sorted units (93/49 SUA/MUA and 156/19 SUA/MUA), trial events, and behavioral data.
• One dataset includes simultaneous LFP recordings.
• Metadata framework (odML) ensures data organization and quality assessment.

Conclusions:

• The released datasets provide valuable resources for motor control research.
• Accessible data formats and provided code facilitate data utilization.
• This work supports reproducible neuroscience and advances understanding of motor cortex function.