Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36930689›Full record

ArticlePloS one2023

Validation of a stereological method for estimating particle size and density from 2D projections with high accuracy.

Jason Seth Rothman, Carolina Borges-Merjane, Noemi Holderith, Peter Jonas, R Angus Silver

Open access · goldFull text read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
1.6field-weighted citation impact, top 21% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.

Jason Seth RothmanDepartment of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London, United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0003-3036-2291
Carolina Borges-MerjaneCellular Neuroscience, Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria.
Noemi HolderithLaboratory of Cellular Neurophysiology, Institute of Experimental Medicine, Budapest, Hungary.
Peter JonasCellular Neuroscience, Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria.
R Angus SilverDepartment of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
Institute of Science and Technology Austria · ATUniversity College London · GBHUN-REN Institute of Experimental Medicine · HU

Funding

Wellcome Trust 203048Wellcome Trust 203048/Z/16/Z
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Stereological methods for estimating the 3D particle size and density from 2D projections are essential to many research fields. These methods are, however, prone to errors arising from undetected particle profiles due to sectioning and limited resolution, known as 'lost caps'. A potential solution developed by Keiding, Jensen, and Ranek in 1972, which we refer to as the Keiding model, accounts for lost caps by quantifying the smallest detectable profile in terms of its limiting 'cap angle' (ϕ), a size-independent measure of a particle's distance from the section surface. However, this simple solution has not been widely adopted nor tested. Rather, model-independent design-based stereological methods, which do not explicitly account for lost caps, have come to the fore. Here, we provide the first experimental validation of the Keiding model by comparing the size and density of particles estimated from 2D projections with direct measurement from 3D EM reconstructions of the same tissue. We applied the Keiding model to estimate the size and density of somata, nuclei and vesicles in the cerebellum of mice and rats, where high packing density can be problematic for design-based methods. Our analysis reveals a Gaussian distribution for ϕ rather than a single value. Nevertheless, curve fits of the Keiding model to the 2D diameter distribution accurately estimate the mean ϕ and 3D diameter distribution. While systematic testing using simulations revealed an upper limit to determining ϕ, our analysis shows that estimated ϕ can be used to determine the 3D particle density from the 2D density under a wide range of conditions, and this method is potentially more accurate than minimum-size-based lost-cap corrections and disector methods. Our results show the Keiding model provides an efficient means of accurately estimating the size and density of particles from 2D projections even under conditions of a high density.

Indexed as

CerebellumNeuronsAnimalsParticle SizeRats

Identifiers

PMID36930689
PMCPMC10022809
OpenAlexW4327678638

What OpenQuestion holds

Textfull text, public
LicenceCC BY
measurements read138
table measurements read2
identifiers read22
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.