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Neuropil of Stratum Radiatum

When reconstructed from series of ultrathin sections into three dimensions, a spatial puzzle is obtained, representing the closest to a real view of neuropil which can be seen using up-to-date imaging methods (Figure 3).

Figure 3. 3D reconstruction of neuropil.

If various structural elements from which this puzzle is built are labeled by particular colors or isolated one from another, the confusing complex architecture of the neuropil can be step by step analyzed. Astrocytic glial processes are colored in pale blue in Figure 4 leaving uncolored all processes of neural character.

Figure 4. 3D neuropil with astrocytic processes colored pale blue.

In Figure 5, axons were colored in green and the plasma membrane of the dendritic shaft and its spines was made semitransparent, thus enabling to visualize mitochondrion (blue-green), smooth endoplasmic reticulum (yellow) and axo-spinous synapses (red).

Figure 5. Color-coded 3D view of neuropil.

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Last Updated: 06/24/06