ShuTu: Rat dentate gyrus granule cell 63X
Here we provide images of a rat dentate gyrus granule cell (63X) for practicing reconstruction using the ShuTu software platform. The cell was filled and imaged by Ching-Lung Hsu in the Spruston Lab. Two resolutions are provided, 63X and 100X. For quick evaluation, use this file 63X.
ShuTu (Chinese for "dendrite") is a software platform for semi-automated reconstruction of neuronal morphology. It is designed for neurons stained following patch-clamp recording and biocytin filling/staining. With an additional preprocessing step, it can also handle fluorescence images from confocal stacks.
Even when there is only a single neuron in the imaged volume, automated reconstruction is tricky, because of background. Thus, ShuTu was developed to facilitate a two-step process: automated reconstruction, followed by manual correction. The software uses sophisticated algorithms to perform the automated reconstruction, as well as a convenient user interface to facilitate efficient completion of the reconstruction via manual annotation.