Title
Universal features of dendrites through centripetal branch ordering.
Abstract
Dendrites form predominantly binary trees that are exquisitely embedded in the networks of the brain. While neuronal computation is known to depend on the morphology of dendrites, their underlying topological blueprint remains unknown. Here, we used a centripetal branch ordering scheme originally developed to describe river networks-the Horton-Strahler order (SO)-to examine hierarchical relationships of branching statistics in reconstructed and model dendritic trees. We report on a number of universal topological relationships with SO that are true for all binary trees and distinguish those from SO-sorted metric measures that appear to be cell type-specific. The latter are therefore potential new candidates for categorising dendritic tree structures. Interestingly, we find a faithful correlation of branch diameters with centripetal branch orders, indicating a possible functional importance of SO for dendritic morphology and growth. Also, simulated local voltage responses to synaptic inputs are strongly correlated with SO. In summary, our study identifies important SO-dependent measures in dendritic morphology that are relevant for neural function while at the same time it describes other relationships that are universal for all dendrites.
Year
DOI
Venue
2017
10.1371/journal.pcbi.1005615
PLOS COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY
Field
DocType
Volume
Topology,Biology,Dendritic spike,Centripetal force,Algorithm,Binary tree,Tree structure,Genetics,Branching (version control),Computation
Journal
13
Issue
ISSN
Citations 
7
1553-7358
0
PageRank 
References 
Authors
0.34
6
4
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Alexandra Vormberg100.34
Felix Effenberger2375.94
Julia Muellerleile300.34
Hermann Cuntz4807.71