A cell culture model for synapse development

A GFP-transfected neuron (green) from embryonic day 17 rat hippocampus grows in culture on a bed of underlying glial cells (labeled for GFAP in blue). Other neurons in the culture make synaptic contacts with the dendrites of this cell (presynaptic terminals are labeled for the synaptic vesicle protein synapsin I in red). We use transfection of low density neuronal cultures to study how gene manipulation in single cells affects the process of synapse formation.