A regularity index for dendrites - local statistics of a neuron's input space.

ABSTRACT: Neurons collect their inputs from other neurons by sending out arborized dendritic structures. However, the relationship between the shape of dendrites and the precise organization of synaptic inputs in the neural tissue remains unclear. Inputs could be distributed in tight clusters, entirely randomly or else in a regular grid-like manner. Here, we analyze dendritic branching structures using a regularity index R, based on average nearest neighbor distances between branch and termination points, characterizing their spatial distribution. We find that the distributions of these points depend strongly on cell types, indicating possible fundamental differences in synaptic input organization. Moreover, R is independent of cell size and we find that it is only weakly correlated with other branc

SUBMITTER: Anton-Sanchez L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6258381 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature