Thalamocortical Connectivity: A 3D View into Brain Circuit Formation and Refinement

The Simon Lab project examines axons that connect the thalamus to the cortex, a important pathway often referred to as the ‘gateway to the cortex.’ Here they visualize these axonal connections in an intact mouse brain using a technique called whole mount immunolabeling that allows for a 3-D view of cells within tissues. They are able to make just the axons fluorescent, and this allows them to see where within the cortex they project and, central to their work, how these axons are refined or sculpted as the mouse ages.