N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) play important functions in neural development. NR2B is the predominant NR2 subunit of NMDAR in the developing brain. Here we use mosaic analysis with double markers (MADM) to knock out NR2B in isolated single cells and analyze its cell-autonomous function in dendrite development. NR2B mutant dentate gyrus granule cells (dGCs) and barrel cortex layer 4 sp...

Neurons are one of the most morphologically diverse cell types, in large part owing to their intricate dendrite branching patterns. Dendrites are structures that are specialized to receive and process inputs in neurons, thus their specific morphologies reflect neural connectivity and influence information flow through circuits. Recent studies in Drosophila on the molecular basis of dendrite div...

Rough electrodeposition, uncontrolled parasitic side-reactions with electrolytes and dendrite-induced short-circuits have hindered development of advanced energy storage technologies based on metallic lithium, sodium and aluminium electrodes. Solid polymer electrolytes and nanoparticle-polymer composites have shown promise as candidates to suppress lithium dendrite growth, but the challenge of ...

Growth of a properly complex dendrite arbor is a key step in neuronal differentiation and a prerequisite for neural circuit formation. Diverse cell surface molecules, such as the clustered protocadherins (Pcdhs), have long been proposed to regulate circuit formation through specific cell-cell interactions. Here, using transgenic and conditional knockout mice to manipulate γ-Pcdh repertoire in t...

The proper formation and morphogenesis of dendrites is fundamental to the establishment of neural circuits in the brain. Following cell cycle exit and migration, neurons undergo organized stages of dendrite morphogenesis, which include dendritic arbor growth and elaboration followed by retraction and pruning. Although these developmental stages were characterized over a century ago, molecular r...

Activity-dependent dendrite elaboration influences the pattern of interneuronal connectivity and network function. In the present study, we examined the mechanism by which the GluR1 subunit of AMPA receptors controls dendrite morphogenesis. GluR1 binds to SAP97, a scaffolding protein that is a component of the postsynaptic density, via its C-terminal 7 aa. We find that elimination of this inter...

Le Roux and Ziegler asked whether every simply connected compact nonempty planar Π 1 set always contains a computable point. In this paper, we solve the problem of le Roux and Ziegler by showing that there exists a planar Π 1 dendroid without computable points. We also provide several pathological examples of tree-like Π 1 continua fulfilling certain global incomputability properties: there is ...

The dendritic trees of neurons result from specific patterns of growth and branching, and dendrite branches of the same neuron avoid one another to spread over a particular receptive field. Recognition molecules on the surfaces of dendrites influence these patterning and avoidance processes by promoting attractive, repulsive or adhesive responses to specific cues. The Drosophila transmembrane p...

Brain development requires correct targeting of multiple thousand synaptic terminals onto staggeringly complex dendritic arbors. The mechanisms by which input synapse numbers are matched to dendrite size, and by which synaptic inputs from different transmitter systems are correctly partitioned onto a postsynaptic arbor, are incompletely understood. By combining quantitative neuroanatomy with ta...

The rate and direction of axon and dendrite growth depend on multiple guidance signals and growth factors. Semaphorin 3A (Sema3A) acts as a repellent for axons and attractant for dendrites. Here, we show that the requirement for integrin engagement distinguishes the response of axons and dendrites to Sema3A in hippocampal neurons. Sema3A promotes the extension of hippocampal dendrites by a path...