The C. elegans Connectome Consists of Homogenous Circuits with Defined Functional Roles.
A major goal of systems neuroscience is to decipher the structure-function relationship in neural networks. Here we study network functionality in light of the common-neighbor-rule (CNR) in which a pair of neurons is more likely to be connected the more common neighbors it shares. Focusing on the fu...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2016-09-01
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| Series: | PLoS Computational Biology |
| Online Access: | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5015834?pdf=render |
| _version_ | 1819114353622777856 |
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| author | Aharon Azulay Eyal Itskovits Alon Zaslaver |
| author_facet | Aharon Azulay Eyal Itskovits Alon Zaslaver |
| author_sort | Aharon Azulay |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | A major goal of systems neuroscience is to decipher the structure-function relationship in neural networks. Here we study network functionality in light of the common-neighbor-rule (CNR) in which a pair of neurons is more likely to be connected the more common neighbors it shares. Focusing on the fully-mapped neural network of C. elegans worms, we establish that the CNR is an emerging property in this connectome. Moreover, sets of common neighbors form homogenous structures that appear in defined layers of the network. Simulations of signal propagation reveal their potential functional roles: signal amplification and short-term memory at the sensory/inter-neuron layer, and synchronized activity at the motoneuron layer supporting coordinated movement. A coarse-grained view of the neural network based on homogenous connected sets alone reveals a simple modular network architecture that is intuitive to understand. These findings provide a novel framework for analyzing larger, more complex, connectomes once these become available. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T04:43:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d6f4507955484964b82e6080abdb0125 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1553-734X 1553-7358 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T04:43:57Z |
| publishDate | 2016-09-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS Computational Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-d6f4507955484964b82e6080abdb01252022-12-21T18:38:40ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS Computational Biology1553-734X1553-73582016-09-01129e100502110.1371/journal.pcbi.1005021The C. elegans Connectome Consists of Homogenous Circuits with Defined Functional Roles.Aharon AzulayEyal ItskovitsAlon ZaslaverA major goal of systems neuroscience is to decipher the structure-function relationship in neural networks. Here we study network functionality in light of the common-neighbor-rule (CNR) in which a pair of neurons is more likely to be connected the more common neighbors it shares. Focusing on the fully-mapped neural network of C. elegans worms, we establish that the CNR is an emerging property in this connectome. Moreover, sets of common neighbors form homogenous structures that appear in defined layers of the network. Simulations of signal propagation reveal their potential functional roles: signal amplification and short-term memory at the sensory/inter-neuron layer, and synchronized activity at the motoneuron layer supporting coordinated movement. A coarse-grained view of the neural network based on homogenous connected sets alone reveals a simple modular network architecture that is intuitive to understand. These findings provide a novel framework for analyzing larger, more complex, connectomes once these become available.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5015834?pdf=render |
| spellingShingle | Aharon Azulay Eyal Itskovits Alon Zaslaver The C. elegans Connectome Consists of Homogenous Circuits with Defined Functional Roles. PLoS Computational Biology |
| title | The C. elegans Connectome Consists of Homogenous Circuits with Defined Functional Roles. |
| title_full | The C. elegans Connectome Consists of Homogenous Circuits with Defined Functional Roles. |
| title_fullStr | The C. elegans Connectome Consists of Homogenous Circuits with Defined Functional Roles. |
| title_full_unstemmed | The C. elegans Connectome Consists of Homogenous Circuits with Defined Functional Roles. |
| title_short | The C. elegans Connectome Consists of Homogenous Circuits with Defined Functional Roles. |
| title_sort | c elegans connectome consists of homogenous circuits with defined functional roles |
| url | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5015834?pdf=render |
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