Geometry of neonatal neurones and the regulation of synapse elimination

• DOI: 10.1038/293469a0
• Publication Date: 2004-11-17T20:06:58Z
• Authors: Richard I. Hume; Dale Purves
• Keywords: Ciliary ganglion; Dendrite (mathematics)

In the ciliary ganglion of adult rabbits, ganglion cells lacking dendrites are generally innervated by a single axon, whereas cells with one or more dendrites are innervated by a number of different axons that increases in proportion to the complexity of their dendritic arbor1 (see also refs 2–4). We have now explored the basis of this correlation by comparing the dendritic arborizations of cells receiving different numbers of axons during and after the period of synapse elimination that occurs early in postnatal life5 (see also ref. 6). Our results suggest that the geometry of neonatal neurones influences the competitive interaction between the several axons that initially innervate the same cell. This finding in turn implies that an important function of dendrites is to regulate the number of different axons that ultimately innervate each neurone.