Synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in Drosophila.
The pattern of synaptic connections among neurons defines the circuit structure, which constrains the computations that a circuit can perform. The strength of synaptic connections is costly to measure yet important for accurate circuit modeling. Synaptic surface area has been shown to correlate with...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2022-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0266064 |
| _version_ | 1811332028253077504 |
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| author | Christopher L Barnes Daniel Bonnéry Albert Cardona |
| author_facet | Christopher L Barnes Daniel Bonnéry Albert Cardona |
| author_sort | Christopher L Barnes |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The pattern of synaptic connections among neurons defines the circuit structure, which constrains the computations that a circuit can perform. The strength of synaptic connections is costly to measure yet important for accurate circuit modeling. Synaptic surface area has been shown to correlate with synaptic strength, yet in the emerging field of connectomics, most studies rely instead on the counts of synaptic contacts between two neurons. Here we quantified the relationship between synaptic count and synaptic area as measured from volume electron microscopy of the larval Drosophila central nervous system. We found that the total synaptic surface area, summed across all synaptic contacts from one presynaptic neuron to a postsynaptic one, can be accurately predicted solely from the number of synaptic contacts, for a variety of neurotransmitters. Our findings support the use of synaptic counts for approximating synaptic strength when modeling neural circuits. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T16:29:40Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-72eb734a16b840508b8a91361ee8e7cc |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T16:29:40Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-72eb734a16b840508b8a91361ee8e7cc2022-12-22T02:39:37ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032022-01-01174e026606410.1371/journal.pone.0266064Synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in Drosophila.Christopher L BarnesDaniel BonnéryAlbert CardonaThe pattern of synaptic connections among neurons defines the circuit structure, which constrains the computations that a circuit can perform. The strength of synaptic connections is costly to measure yet important for accurate circuit modeling. Synaptic surface area has been shown to correlate with synaptic strength, yet in the emerging field of connectomics, most studies rely instead on the counts of synaptic contacts between two neurons. Here we quantified the relationship between synaptic count and synaptic area as measured from volume electron microscopy of the larval Drosophila central nervous system. We found that the total synaptic surface area, summed across all synaptic contacts from one presynaptic neuron to a postsynaptic one, can be accurately predicted solely from the number of synaptic contacts, for a variety of neurotransmitters. Our findings support the use of synaptic counts for approximating synaptic strength when modeling neural circuits.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0266064 |
| spellingShingle | Christopher L Barnes Daniel Bonnéry Albert Cardona Synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in Drosophila. PLoS ONE |
| title | Synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in Drosophila. |
| title_full | Synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in Drosophila. |
| title_fullStr | Synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in Drosophila. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in Drosophila. |
| title_short | Synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in Drosophila. |
| title_sort | synaptic counts approximate synaptic contact area in drosophila |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0266064 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT christopherlbarnes synapticcountsapproximatesynapticcontactareaindrosophila AT danielbonnery synapticcountsapproximatesynapticcontactareaindrosophila AT albertcardona synapticcountsapproximatesynapticcontactareaindrosophila |