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Related Experiment Video

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Orientation and direction tuning align with dendritic morphology and spatial connectivity in mouse visual cortex.

Simon Weiler1, Drago Guggiana Nilo2, Tobias Bonhoeffer2

  • 1Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Martinsried, Germany; Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Großhaderner Str. 2, 82152 Planegg, Germany.

Current Biology : CB
|March 11, 2022
PubMed
Summary

Neocortical pyramidal cells

Keywords:
L2/3 pyramidal cellscalcium imagingdendritic morphologydirection tuninggenetically encoded calcium indicatorin vitroin vivoin vivo two-photon imaginglaser-scanning photostimulationorientation tuningpatch clampsensory cortexsynaptic connectivityvisual cortex

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Computational Neuroscience
  • Systems Neuroscience

Background:

  • Functional properties of neocortical pyramidal cells (PCs), like visual direction and orientation selectivity, are shaped by excitatory and inhibitory inputs.
  • The precise relationship between L2/3 PC function, spatial information sampling, and integration remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the link between dendritic morphology, input connectivity, and the orientation/direction tuning of L2/3 PCs in the mouse visual cortex.
  • To understand how spatial arrangement of inputs influences neuronal selectivity.

Main Methods:

  • Combined in vivo two-photon calcium imaging, in vitro functional circuit mapping, and dendritic reconstruction of individual L2/3 PCs.
  • Analyzed the spatial distribution of excitatory and inhibitory inputs relative to dendritic structure and neuronal tuning.

Main Results:

  • Found correlations between apical dendritic tree elongation and preferred orientation, with less complex trees in sharply tuned cells.
  • Observed spatial offset of presynaptic partners in direction-selective PCs, with excitatory inputs skewed along the preferred direction.
  • Demonstrated a positive correlation between input asymmetry and the degree of direction selectivity.

Conclusions:

  • Dendritic architecture and the spatial organization of presynaptic excitatory and inhibitory cells significantly shape L2/3 PC orientation and direction tuning.
  • Spatial arrangement of inputs is a critical factor in determining the functional selectivity of visual cortical neurons.