[The effect of early partial postnatal deafferentation of the visual cortex on synapse formation]

A quantitative analysis of the synaptic population of the upper layers of the visual cortex of mice Acomys cahirinus has shown that the process of postnatal synaptogenesis proceeds during all the period of observations (1-13 days), the intensity of morphological differentiation of various types of synapses being higher during the first 5 days of life. Partial deafferentation of the visual cortex (dissection of the corpus callosum) in 3-, 5- and 13-day-old Acomyses results in changes of synapses of the II-III layers of the visual cortex of adult animals--with age of the operated animals the number of types of synapses, where quantitative morphological changes are observed, decreases. Thus, there exists a correlation between the maturity of synaptic population at the moment of damaging and the character of ultrastructural changes in response to this damage.