Knowledge Base

Basic Settings

EthoVision XT: Experiment Settings

After creating a new experiment, choose Setup > Experiment Settings. Define the number of arenas, the features that you want to track, and the camera properties.

To define the Inscopix devices:

1. Select Use of Trial Control Hardware, and click the Settings button.
2. Depending on the type of USB-IO box you use, choose either Noldus USB-IO box or Noldus Mini USB-IO box.
3. Locate the TTL port that you use to connect the USB-IO box, and from the Device Type list choose Custom Hardware.
4. Under Device ID, enter a name for the device. For example, nVista Video, nVoke Video, or nVoke LED.
5. Repeat the steps above to declare more devices. If you want to trigger Calcium Imaging and LED stimulation, you must use two TTL ports from the USB-IO box, one for the TRIG input and one for the GPIO[n] input of the nVoke device.
6. Click OK. Next, open the Arena Settings (see below).

EthoVision XT: Arena Settings

Choose Setup > Arena Settings. Calibrate and define the outline of the arena(s) and the zones.

To map the Inscopix devices to the arena(s):

1. Click the Arena - Hardware Mapping button at the bottom-right corner of the screen.
2. Check that the device appears under the arena name. In the case of multiple devices, assign each of them to one arena and make sure that they do not occur in the cells for other arenas.
3. Optionally, edit the Device Name (default: Device A, B, etc.). This name will appear in the Trial Control Settings and in the Analysis profile.
4. Repeat steps 2–3 to map the remaining devices.

Inscopix Devices

1. Connect the microscope to the subject and pass the cord through the tracking chamber/PhenoTyper and connect it to the Inscopix device.
2. On the Inscopix computer, launch the data acquisition software and adjust the imaging settings, such as the frame rate and the gain.
3. In the data acquisition software, select to trigger from external hardware. If you are doing Calcium Imaging only, you can use the Basic Recording mode in the Inscopix software. Make sure that the Recording Start mode is set to Triggered Recording.
4. When using optogenetics stimulation, in most cases you must use the Advanced Recording mode. Specify the type of stimulation, power, number of repeats, etc. See also the nVista and nVoke User Manual for examples.

Source: EthoVision XT 18 - Application Manual, Noldus Information Technology