A model of temporal and activity-dependent mechanisms underlying the phylogenetic development of cerebellar molecular interneuron morphology
The morphology of the cerebellar molecular interneurons in mammals and birds is distinguished by the presence of more complex cell types than those seen in other animals. A quantitative study of these cells indicates that there are two components responsible for an increase in the cells complexity [F. Sultan, J.M. Bower, J. Comp. Neurol. 393 (1998) 353373]. In this study we present a model that could explain this development by assuming that an increase in the number of these cells in phylogeny could lead towards two independent processes. First, towards more stricter layering of the neurons and thus to a more rigid influence of layer specificities on their morphology and second, that the greater cell density could lead to more synaptic interneuron to interneuron interaction shaping the neuron morphology in an activity dependent fashion. We further propose that these mechanisms might yield insights into the way the cerebellar cortex processes its inputs.
interneurons morphology developmental model connectivity cerebellar function