The observed variety of dendritic structures in the brains is striking. Why are they so different, and what determine the branching patterns?
Following the dictum “if you understand it, you can build it”, the lab of the guest builds dendritic structures in a computer and explore the underlying principles.
Two key principles seem to be to minimize (i) the overall length of dendrites and (ii) the path length from the synapses to the soma.
Links:
- Homepage of Hermann Cuntz
- Cuntz et al.: “One Rule to Grow Them All: A General Theory of Neuronal Branching and Its Practical Application”, PloS Comp Biol (2010)
- Castro et al.: “Achieving functional neuronal dendrite structure through sequential stochastic growth and retraction”, eLife (2020)
- The FlyWire (fruitfly) connectome
- MICrONS Explorer
The podcast was recorded on December 12th, 2024 and lasts 1 hour and 34 minutes.
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In addition to the access via the link above, the audio version of the podcast is also available through major podcast providers such as Apple, Spotify, and Amazon Music/Audible.
The video version is available for Patreon supporters via patreon.com/TheoreticalNeurosciencePodcast or at the YouTube channel www.youtube.com/@TheoreticalNeurosciencePodcast .