Wiring economy and volume exclusion determine neuronal placement in the Drosophila brain.

ABSTRACT: Wiring economy has successfully explained the individual placement of neurons in simple nervous systems like that of Caenorhabditis elegans [1-3] and the locations of coarser structures like cortical areas in complex vertebrate brains [4]. However, it remains unclear whether wiring economy can explain the placement of individual neurons in brains larger than that of C. elegans. Indeed, given the greater number of neuronal interconnections in larger brains, simply minimizing the length of connections results in unrealistic configurations, with multiple neurons occupying the same position in space. Avoiding such configurations, or volume exclusion, repels neurons from each other, thus counteracting wiring economy. Here we test whether wiring economy together with volume exclusion can explain

SUBMITTER: Rivera-Alba M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3244492 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature