Sequencing the Connectome
- Quote: "Interestingly, the utility of the connectome in C. elegans is somewhat limited because function is highly multiplexed, with different neurons performing different roles depending on the state of neuromodulation [7], possibly as a mechanism for compensating for the small number of neurons."
- In comparison, the authors argue that the role of neurons in mammalian brains is much more highly determined by connectivity / physical location, and support this with examples from the visual system (area MT; how layer in V1 determines simple vs. complex tuning).
- Only have started work on this highly ambitious project -- current plan is to use PRV amplicons for permuting the neuronal barcodes -- and offer no results, just the general framework of the idea.
- Given that Ian spoke of the idea when he first started at CSH, I wonder just how practical this idea is?
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