| Abstract: | The number of granule cell dendritic spines per micrometer of dendritic length in the dorsal and ventral leaves of the dentate gyrus was quantified using light microscopic-Golgi preparations of normal adult rats. Spines were counted in terms of 3 categories of spine form for the 3 afferent termination zones of the molecular layer and corrected for shading errors. Total spine density averaged 1.6 spines/micron of dendritic length in the dorsal leaf and 1.3 spines/micron of dendritic length in the ventral leaf. Statistically significant differences in spine density existed among the 3 shape categories. Variations in spine density occurred by shape category among the afferent termination zones. |
