Pyramidal Cells of the Frontal Lobe: All the More Spinous to Think With

The basal dendritic arbors of pyramidal cells in prefrontal areas 10, 11, and 12 of the macaque monkey were revealed by intracellular injection in fixed, flat-mounted, cortical slices. The size, number of branches, and spine density of the basal dendrites were quantified and compared with those of p...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of neuroscience 2000-09, Vol.20 (18), p.95-RC95
Main Author: Elston, Guy N
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Dendrites - classification
Dendrites - ultrastructure
Female
Fluorescent Dyes
Frontal Lobe - cytology
Immunohistochemistry
Isoquinolines
Macaca
Microinjections
Occipital Lobe - cytology
Parietal Lobe - cytology
Prefrontal Cortex - cytology
Pyramidal Cells - cytology
Rapid Communication
Temporal Lobe - cytology
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Summary:The basal dendritic arbors of pyramidal cells in prefrontal areas 10, 11, and 12 of the macaque monkey were revealed by intracellular injection in fixed, flat-mounted, cortical slices. The size, number of branches, and spine density of the basal dendrites were quantified and compared with those of pyramidal cells in the occipital, parietal, and temporal lobes. These analyses revealed that cells in the frontal lobe were significantly more spinous than those in the other lobes, having as many as 16 times more spines than cells in the primary visual area (V1), four times more those in area 7a, and 45% more than those in area TE. As each dendritic spine receives at least one excitatory input, the large number of spines reported for layer III cells in prefrontal cortex suggests that they are capable of integrating a greater number of excitatory inputs than layer III pyramidal cells so far studied in the occipital, parietal, and temporal lobes. The ability to integrate a large number of excitatory inputs may be important for the sustained tonic activity characteristic of neurons in prefrontal cortex and their role in memory and cognition.
ISSN:0270-6474
1529-2401
DOI:10.1523/jneurosci.20-18-j0002.2000