title: Development of dendritic form and function.
abstract: The nervous system is populated by numerous types of neurons, each bearing a dendritic arbor with a characteristic morphology. These type-specific features influence many aspects of a neuron's function, including the number and identity of presynaptic inputs and how inputs are integrated to determine firing properties. Here, we review the mechanisms that regulate the construction of cell type-specific dendrite patterns during development. We focus on four aspects of dendrite patterning that are particularly important in determining the function of the mature neuron: (a) dendrite shape, including branching pattern and geometry of the arbor; (b) dendritic arbor size;
authors.forename: Julie L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Lefebvre
authors.affiliation: Center for Brain Science and Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138; email: sanesj@mcb.harvard.edu.
authors.forename: Joshua R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Sanes
authors.affiliation: Departments of Neurobiology and Ophthalmology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina 27710; email: jeremy.kay@duke.edu.
authors.forename: Jeremy N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Kay
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D023902:Chromosome Pairing / Q000502:physiology; D003712:Dendrites / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans
keywords: dendrite; neural development; self-avoidance; synapse formation; tiling