Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38951162›Full record

ArticleCommunications biology2024

Tracing nerve fibers with volume electron microscopy to quantitatively analyze brain connectivity.

Marta Turegano-Lopez, Felix de Las Pozas, Andrea Santuy, Jose-Rodrigo Rodriguez, Javier DeFelipe, Angel Merchan-Perez

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Communications biology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. A Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (International journal of molecular sciences · 2025
    Article
  4. Ultrafast endocytosis in mouse cortical inhibitory synapses.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025
    Article
  5. 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

6 authors.

Marta Turegano-LopezLaboratorio Cajal de Circuitos Corticales, Centro de Tecnología Biomédica, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Pozuelo de Alarcón, 28223, Madrid, Spain.
Felix de Las PozasVisualization & Graphics Lab (VG-Lab), Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, C/Tulipán S/N, Móstoles, 28933, Madrid, Spain.ORCID 0000-0003-2477-3908
Andrea SantuyDepartment of Basic Sciences, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya (UIC), San Cugat del Vallès, 08195, Barcelona, Spain.
Jose-Rodrigo RodriguezLaboratorio Cajal de Circuitos Corticales, Centro de Tecnología Biomédica, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Pozuelo de Alarcón, 28223, Madrid, Spain.
Javier DeFelipeLaboratorio Cajal de Circuitos Corticales, Centro de Tecnología Biomédica, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Pozuelo de Alarcón, 28223, Madrid, Spain.ORCID 0000-0001-5484-0660
Angel Merchan-PerezLaboratorio Cajal de Circuitos Corticales, Centro de Tecnología Biomédica, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Pozuelo de Alarcón, 28223, Madrid, Spain. angel.merchan@upm.es.ORCID 0000-0002-7228-5821

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The highly complex structure of the brain requires an approach that can unravel its connectivity. Using volume electron microscopy and a dedicated software we can trace and measure all nerve fibers present within different samples of brain tissue. With this software tool, individual dendrites and axons are traced, obtaining a simplified "skeleton" of each fiber, which is linked to its corresponding synaptic contacts. The result is an intricate meshwork of axons and dendrites interconnected by a cloud of synaptic junctions. To test this methodology, we apply it to the stratum radiatum of the hippocampus and layers 1 and 3 of the somatosensory cortex of the mouse. We find that nerve fibers are densely packed in the neuropil, reaching up to 9 kilometers per cubic mm. We obtain the number of synapses, the number and lengths of dendrites and axons, the linear densities of synapses established by dendrites and axons, and their location on dendritic spines and shafts. The quantitative data obtained through this method enable us to identify subtle traits and differences in the synaptic organization of the samples, which might have been overlooked in a qualitative analysis.

Indexed as

Microscopy, ElectronNerve FibersSynapsesAnimalsAxonsBrainDendritesHippocampusMaleMiceMice, Inbred C57BLSoftwareSomatosensory CortexVolume Electron Microscopy

Identifiers

PMID38951162
PMCPMC11217374

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.