ElecFeX is a user-friendly toolbox for efficient feature extraction from single-cell electrophysiological recordings.

Abstract

Characterizing neurons by their electrophysiological phenotypes is essential for understanding the neural basis of behavioral and cognitive functions. Technological developments have enabled the collection of hundreds of neural recordings; this calls for new tools capable of performing feature extraction efficiently. To address the urgent need for a powerful and accessible tool, we developed ElecFeX, an open-source MATLAB-based toolbox that (1) has an intuitive graphical user interface, (2) provides customizable measurements for a wide range of electrophysiological features, (3) processes large-size datasets effortlessly via batch analysis, and (4) yields formatted output for further analysis. We implemented ElecFeX on a diverse set of neural recordings; demonstrated its functionality, versatility, and efficiency in capturing electrical features; and established its significance in distinguishing neuronal subgroups across brain regions and species. ElecFeX is thus presented as a user-friendly toolbox to benefit the neuroscience community by minimizing the time required for extracting features from their electrophysiological datasets.