In the earliest stages of development, the sensory neurons began with only two or three dendrites. This maximum intensity projected image is pseudo colored based on the intensity value. The complex and highly variable dendritic morphologies emerge from the stochastic dynamics of dendrite tips. Because neurons reside just under the cuticle the researchers were able to observe this process in real time in live larvae.Īfter imaging the neurons at different stages of development, the team was able to create time-lapse movies of the growth. To visualize this process, they tagged neurons with fluorescent markers and imaged them on a spinning disk microscope. The team studied neuronal growth in fruit flies as they matured from embryos into larvae. “We’re working on this branching process-how do branches form and grow?” That is what’s underlying the whole way the nervous system works.” “Neurons are highly branched cells, and they’re like this because each neuron makes a connection with thousands of other neurons,” says Joe Howard, Ph.D., Eugene Higgins Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry and professor of physics, and senior researcher of the study. Their findings are published in Science Advances. And now, Yale researchers have discovered the molecular mechanism behind the growth of this complex system. When the human brain develops, these structures branch out in a beautifully intricate yet poorly understood way that allows nerve cells to form connections and send messages throughout the body. Our nervous system is composed of billions of neurons that speak to each other through their axons and dendrites. Summary: Study reveals the molecular mechanism that allows neural networks to grow and branch out.
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