%0 Journal Article
%T Automated 4D analysis of dendritic spine morphology: applications to stimulus-induced spine remodeling and pharmacological rescue in a disease model
%A Sharon A Swanger
%A Xiaodi Yao
%A Christina Gross
%A Gary J Bassell
%J Molecular Brain
%D 2011
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1756-6606-4-38
%X Dendritic spines are dynamic, actin-rich protrusions that form the postsynaptic compartment at most glutamatergic synapses [1]. Synapse strength is closely correlated with dendritic spine morphology, and synaptic activity regulates spine number and shape during brain development, behavioral learning, and aging [2-4]. In addition, abnormal spine morphology is prevalent in neurological diseases such as intellectual disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, schizophrenia, mood disorders, and Alzheimer's disease [5-7]. Although many details regarding the spine structure-synapse function relationship remain unclear, it is evident that spine morphology can impact excitatory neurotransmission and is an important aspect of neuronal development, plasticity, and disease [6,8-10].The lack of automated methods for quantifying spine number and geometry has hindered analysis of the mechanisms linking spine structure to synapse function [11]. Cultured neurons are the primary model system for studying the basic mechanisms regulating neuronal structure and function as these mechanistic studies require complex designs and large sample sizes in order to produce meaningful results. While several recent reports have described automated algorithms for analyzing neuron morphology in vivo [12-18], few independent studies have validated these methods [19,20] and there are no established methods for automated 3D spine analysis in cultured neurons. Son et al. developed an automated spine analysis algorithm using 2D images of cultured neurons, but 2D analyses do not consider a significant amount of information including all protrusions extending into the z-plane [21]. The majority of spine morphology studies have relied on manual measurements, which are time consuming, often biased by experimenter error and fatigue, and have limited reproducibility [14].Here, we present, validate, and apply an automated 3D approach using the commercially available software program Filament Tracer (Imaris, Bitpl
%K dendritic spine morphology
%K fragile X syndrome
%K automated image analysis
%K BDNF
%K dendritic spine remodeling
%K live cell imaging
%K 3D reconstruction
%K synapse
%K FMRP
%K PI3K inhibitor
%U http://www.molecularbrain.com/content/4/1/38