Nature

A brain-wide map of neural activity during complex behaviour

L Leenoy Meshulam I Isaiah McRoberts J Jaime Arlandis F Fanny Cazettes D Davide Crombie I Inês C. Laranjeira P Pranav Rai G Georg Raiser F Florian Rau M Michael M. Schartner V Valeria Aguillon-Rodriguez C Cristian Soitu A Anthony M. Zador S Surya Ganguli L Luigi Acerbi F Felix Huber H Hailey Barrell D Dan Birman K Kim Miller M Matthew Tucker K Kenneth Yang A Ari Liu M Maxwell Melin M Masayoshi Murakami S Sophie Denève I Ivan Gordeliy M Mandana Ahmadi J Jaweria Amjad N Naoki Hiratani S Sanjukta Krishnagopal P Peter Latham A Alberto Pezzotta Z Zekai Xu K Kush Banga J Jai Bhagat M Michael Krumin S Samuel Picard C Carolina Quadrado L Lauren E. Wool A Agnès Landemard D Debottam Kundu F Farideh Oloomi C Charline Tessereau Z Zoe C. Ashwood T Tatiana Engel R Robert Fetcho L Laura M. Haetzel B Brenna McMannon Z Zeinab Mohammadi A Alejandro Pan Vazquez J Jonathan W. Pillow N Nicholas A. Roy R Robert Campbell N Naureen Ghani H Hernando Martinez-Vergara T Thomas Mrsic-Flogel Y Yaxuan Yang M Marsa Taheri A Amalia Makri-Cottington S Sabrina Perrenoud L Larry Abbot H Hannah M. Bayer J Julien Boussard E E. Kelly Buchanan C Cole Hurwitz H Hyun Dong Lee C Catalin Mitelut K Kamron Saniee E Erdem Varol S Shuqi Wang C Charles Windolf H Han Yu Y Yizi Zhang D Dora Angelaki B Brandon Benson J Julius Benson D Daniel Birman N Niccolò Bonacchi K Kcenia Bougrova S Sebastian A. Bruijns M Matteo Carandini J Joana A. Catarino G Gaelle A. Chapuis A Anne K. Churchland Y Yang Dan F Felicia Davatolhagh P Peter Dayan E Eric EJ DeWitt T Tatiana A. Engel M Michele Fabbri M Mayo Faulkner I Ila Rani Fiete C Charles Findling L Laura Freitas-Silva B Berk Gerçek K Kenneth D. Harris M Michael Häusser S Sonja B. Hofer F Fei Hu F Félix Hubert J Julia M. Huntenburg A Anup Khanal C Christopher S. Krasniak C Christopher Langdon C Christopher Langfield P Petrina Y. P. Lau Z Zachary F. Mainen G Guido T. Meijer N Nathaniel J. Miska T Thomas D. Mrsic-Flogel J Jean-Paul Noel K Kai Nylund A Alejandro Pan-Vazquez L Liam Paninski A Alexandre Pouget C Cyrille Rossant N Noam Roth R Rylan Schaeffer M Michael Schartner Y Yanliang Shi K Karolina Z. Socha N Nicholas A. Steinmetz K Karel Svoboda A Anne E. Urai M Miles J. Wells S Steven J. West M Matthew R. Whiteway O Olivier Winter I Ilana B. Witten

Abstract

Abstract A key challenge in neuroscience is understanding how neurons in hundreds of interconnected brain regions integrate sensory inputs with previous expectations to initiate movements and make decisions 1 . It is difficult to meet this challenge if different laboratories apply different analyses to different recordings in different regions during different behaviours. Here we report a comprehensive set of recordings from 621,733 neurons recorded with 699 Neuropixels probes across 139 mice in 12 laboratories. The data were obtained from mice performing a decision-making task with sensory, motor and cognitive components. The probes covered 279 brain areas in the left forebrain and midbrain and the right hindbrain and cerebellum. We provide an initial appraisal of this brain-wide map and assess how neural activity encodes key task variables. Representations of visual stimuli transiently appeared in classical visual areas after stimulus onset and then spread to ramp-like activity in a collection of midbrain and hindbrain regions that also encoded choices. Neural responses correlated with impending motor action almost everywhere in the brain. Responses to reward delivery and consumption were also widespread. This publicly available dataset represents a resource for understanding how computations distributed across and within brain areas drive behaviour.

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Article Details

Journal Nature
Volume / Issue Vol. 645, Issue 8079
Published September 04, 2025
Pages 177-191
ISSN 0028-0836
Publisher Nature Portfolio

Journal Info

Nature

Nature Portfolio
ISSN: 0028-0836 Health Sciences

Authors (129)

L

Leenoy Meshulam

I

Isaiah McRoberts

J

Jaime Arlandis

F

Fanny Cazettes

D

Davide Crombie

I

Inês C. Laranjeira

P

Pranav Rai

G

Georg Raiser

F

Florian Rau

M

Michael M. Schartner

V

Valeria Aguillon-Rodriguez

C

Cristian Soitu

A

Anthony M. Zador

S

Surya Ganguli

L

Luigi Acerbi

F

Felix Huber

H

Hailey Barrell

D

Dan Birman

K

Kim Miller

M

Matthew Tucker

K

Kenneth Yang

A

Ari Liu

M

Maxwell Melin

M

Masayoshi Murakami

S

Sophie Denève

I

Ivan Gordeliy

M

Mandana Ahmadi

J

Jaweria Amjad

N

Naoki Hiratani

S

Sanjukta Krishnagopal

P

Peter Latham

A

Alberto Pezzotta

Z

Zekai Xu

K

Kush Banga

J

Jai Bhagat

M

Michael Krumin

S

Samuel Picard

C

Carolina Quadrado

L

Lauren E. Wool

A

Agnès Landemard

D

Debottam Kundu

F

Farideh Oloomi

C

Charline Tessereau

Z

Zoe C. Ashwood

T

Tatiana Engel

R

Robert Fetcho

L

Laura M. Haetzel

B

Brenna McMannon

Z

Zeinab Mohammadi

A

Alejandro Pan Vazquez

J

Jonathan W. Pillow

N

Nicholas A. Roy

R

Robert Campbell

N

Naureen Ghani

H

Hernando Martinez-Vergara

T

Thomas Mrsic-Flogel

Y

Yaxuan Yang

M

Marsa Taheri

A

Amalia Makri-Cottington

S

Sabrina Perrenoud

L

Larry Abbot

H

Hannah M. Bayer

J

Julien Boussard

E

E. Kelly Buchanan

C

Cole Hurwitz

H

Hyun Dong Lee

C

Catalin Mitelut

K

Kamron Saniee

E

Erdem Varol

S

Shuqi Wang

C

Charles Windolf

H

Han Yu

Y

Yizi Zhang

D

Dora Angelaki

B

Brandon Benson

J

Julius Benson

D

Daniel Birman

N

Niccolò Bonacchi

K

Kcenia Bougrova

S

Sebastian A. Bruijns

M

Matteo Carandini

J

Joana A. Catarino

G

Gaelle A. Chapuis

A

Anne K. Churchland

Y

Yang Dan

F

Felicia Davatolhagh

P

Peter Dayan

E

Eric EJ DeWitt

T

Tatiana A. Engel

M

Michele Fabbri

M

Mayo Faulkner

I

Ila Rani Fiete

C

Charles Findling

L

Laura Freitas-Silva

B

Berk Gerçek

K

Kenneth D. Harris

M

Michael Häusser

S

Sonja B. Hofer

F

Fei Hu

F

Félix Hubert

J

Julia M. Huntenburg

A

Anup Khanal

C

Christopher S. Krasniak

C

Christopher Langdon

C

Christopher Langfield

P

Petrina Y. P. Lau

Z

Zachary F. Mainen

G

Guido T. Meijer

N

Nathaniel J. Miska

T

Thomas D. Mrsic-Flogel

J

Jean-Paul Noel

K

Kai Nylund

A

Alejandro Pan-Vazquez

L

Liam Paninski

A

Alexandre Pouget

C

Cyrille Rossant

N

Noam Roth

R

Rylan Schaeffer

M

Michael Schartner

Y

Yanliang Shi

K

Karolina Z. Socha

N

Nicholas A. Steinmetz

K

Karel Svoboda

A

Anne E. Urai

M

Miles J. Wells

S

Steven J. West

M

Matthew R. Whiteway

O

Olivier Winter

I

Ilana B. Witten

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