Published March 2009 | Version Published
Journal Article Open

A proposal for a coordinated effort for the determination of brainwide neuroanatomical connectivity in model organisms at a mesoscopic scale

  • 1. ROR icon Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
  • 2. ROR icon Boston University
  • 3. ROR icon University of Southern California
  • 4. ROR icon Massachusetts General Hospital
  • 5. ROR icon California Institute of Technology
  • 6. ROR icon Columbia University Medical Center
  • 7. ROR icon Neurosciences Institute
  • 8. ROR icon University of Rochester Medical Center
  • 9. ROR icon Allen Institute for Brain Science
  • 10. ROR icon Harvard University
  • 11. ROR icon Brigham and Women's Hospital
  • 12. ROR icon Jacobs University
  • 13. ROR icon University of California, Davis
  • 14. ROR icon University of California, San Diego
  • 15. ROR icon Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre
  • 16. ROR icon Radboud University Nijmegen
  • 17. ROR icon Washington State University
  • 18. ROR icon Washington University in St. Louis
  • 19. ROR icon Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
  • 20. ROR icon Janelia Research Campus
  • 21. ROR icon University of California, Los Angeles

Abstract

In this era of complete genomes, our knowledge of neuroanatomical circuitry remains surprisingly sparse. Such knowledge is critical, however, for both basic and clinical research into brain function. Here we advocate for a concerted effort to fill this gap, through systematic, experimental mapping of neural circuits at a mesoscopic scale of resolution suitable for comprehensive, brainwide coverage, using injections of tracers or viral vectors. We detail the scientific and medical rationale and briefly review existing knowledge and experimental techniques. We define a set of desiderata, including brainwide coverage; validated and extensible experimental techniques suitable for standardization and automation; centralized, open-access data repository; compatibility with existing resources; and tractability with current informatics technology. We discuss a hypothetical but tractable plan for mouse, additional efforts for the macaque, and technique development for human. We estimate that the mouse connectivity project could be completed within five years with a comparatively modest budget.

Additional Information

© 2009 Bohland et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Published March 27, 2009. This paper is a result of discussions at the 2007 and 2008 Brain Architecture Project Banbury Center Meetings, funded by the W. M. Keck Foundation. The sponsors had no role in the conception or preparation of this manuscript.

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Identifiers

PMCID
PMC2655718
Eprint ID
14612
Resolver ID
CaltechAUTHORS:20090717-142050047

Dates

Created
2009-07-24
Created from EPrint's datestamp field
Updated
2021-11-08
Created from EPrint's last_modified field