The dendritic spine story: An intriguing process of discovery

© 2015 DeFelipe. Dendritic spines are key components of a variety of microcircuits and they represent the majority of postsynaptic targets of glutamatergic axon terminals in the brain. The present article will focus on the discovery of dendritic spines, which was possible thanks to the application o...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: DeFelipe, Javier
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2015
País:España
Institución:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/162144
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/162144
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:reticular theory
pyramidal cells
Neuron doctrine
history of neuroscience
granule cells
Purkinje cells
Cajal
Golgi
Descripción
Sumario:© 2015 DeFelipe. Dendritic spines are key components of a variety of microcircuits and they represent the majority of postsynaptic targets of glutamatergic axon terminals in the brain. The present article will focus on the discovery of dendritic spines, which was possible thanks to the application of the Golgi technique to the study of the nervous system, and will also explore the early interpretation of these elements. This discovery represents an interesting chapter in the history of neuroscience as it shows us that progress in the study of the structure of the nervous system is based not only on the emergence of new techniques but also on our ability to exploit the methods already available and correctly interpret their microscopic images.