Rapid Golgi analysis method for efficient and unbiased classification of dendritic spines.
Journal Article (Journal Article)
Dendritic spines are the primary recipients of excitatory synaptic input in the brain. Spine morphology provides important information on the functional state of ongoing synaptic transmission. One of the most commonly used methods to visualize spines is Golgi-Cox staining, which is appealing both due to ease of sample preparation and wide applicability to multiple species including humans. However, the classification of spines is a time-consuming and often expensive task that yields widely varying results between individuals. Here, we present a novel approach to this analysis technique that uses the unique geometry of different spine shapes to categorize spines on a purely objective basis. This rapid Golgi spine analysis method successfully conveyed the maturational shift in spine types during development in the mouse primary visual cortex. This approach, built upon freely available software, can be utilized by researchers studying a broad range of synaptic connectivity phenotypes in both development and disease.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Risher, WC; Ustunkaya, T; Singh Alvarado, J; Eroglu, C
Published Date
- 2014
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 9 / 9
Start / End Page
- e107591 -
PubMed ID
- 25208214
Pubmed Central ID
- PMC4160288
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1932-6203
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1371/journal.pone.0107591
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- United States