Author Spotlight: Optimizing Dendritic Spine Analysis for Balanced Manual and Automated Assessment in the Hippocampus CA1 Apical Dendrites

The scope of our research is to examine the structural profile of dendritic spines in the hippocampus, specifically the CA-one apical dendrite. Through this, we’re trying to answer questions centered around how different inputs to different parts of the same dendrite can be encoded at the cellular level. One challenge is obtaining high resolution images of dendritic spines for spine analysis.

Once you have these images, the method to most accurately and reliably analyze spines in a fashion that isn’t overly burdensome for the researcher presents an additional challenge. A balance must be struck between the two components. This protocol offers a happy medium between fully manual and fully automated dendritic spine analysis.

Our protocol reduces the burden of manually counting individual spines. Additionally, the 3D reconstruction makes it possible to obtain spine volume. Classify the spines at the subtypes automatically.