Location analysis of presynaptically active and silent synapses in single-cultured hippocampal neurons
Authors: Kitaoka Otoya , Oyabu Kohei , Kubota Kaori , Watanabe Takuya , Kondo Satoru , Matsui Teppei , Katsurabayashi Shutaro , Iwasaki Katsunori 
Published: December 2023

A morphologically present but non-functioning synapse is termed a silent synapse. Silent synapses are categorized into “postsynaptically silent synapses,” where AMPA receptors are either absent or non-functional, and “presynaptically silent synapses,” where neurotransmitters cannot be released from nerve terminals. The presence of presynaptically silent synapses remains enigmatic, and their physiological significance is highly intriguing. In this study, we examined the distribution and developmental changes of presynaptically active and silent synapses in individual neurons. Our findings show a gradual increase in the number of excitatory synapses, along with a corresponding decrease in the percentage of presynaptically silent synapses during neuronal development. To pinpoint the distribution of presynaptically active and silent synapses, i.e., their positional information, we enhanced the traditional Sholl analysis and introduced a novel method termed “donut analysis.” Our results indicate that the distribution of presynaptically silent synapses within a single neuron does not exhibit a distinct pattern during synapse development in different areas. However, irrespective of neuronal development, the proportion of presynaptically silent synapses tends to rise as the projection site moves farther from the cell body, suggesting that synapses near the cell body may exhibit higher synaptic transmission efficiency. This study represents the first observation of changes in the distribution of presynaptically active and silent synapses within a single neuron. Additionally, we propose that donut analysis can serve as a valuable analytical tool for evaluating synaptic positional information.

Scope statement

A morphologically present but non-functioning synapse is termed a silent synapse. The presence of presynaptically silent synapses remains enigmatic, and their physiological significance is highly intriguing. This study focused on the distribution and developmental changes of presynaptically active and silent synapses in individual neurons. To pinpoint the distribution of presynaptically active and silent synapses, we enhanced the traditional Sholl analysis and introduced a novel method termed “donut analysis.” We found that the distribution of presynaptically silent synapses within a single neuron does not exhibit a distinct pattern during synapse development in different areas. However, irrespective of neuronal development, the proportion of presynaptically silent synapses tends to rise as the projection site moves farther from the cell body.

This is a new paper that applies “Sholl analysis,” a method invented 70 years ago that is now the gold standard of morphological analysis of the single neuron.

This study represents the first observation of changes in the distribution of presynaptically active and silent synapses within a single neuron. Additionally, we propose that donut analysis can serve as a valuable analytical tool for evaluating synaptic positional information for the design of “synaptic maps” in neural circuits.