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A fast and robust method for automated analysis of axonal transport

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Abstract

Cargo movement along axons and dendrites is indispensable for the survival and maintenance of neuronal networks. Key parameters of this transport such as particle velocities and pausing times are often studied using kymograph construction, which converts the transport along a line of interest from a time-lapse movie into a position versus time image. Here we present a method for the automatic analysis of such kymographs based on the Hough transform, which is a robust and fast technique to extract lines from images. The applicability of the method was tested on simulated kymograph images and real data from axonal transport of synaptophysin and tetanus toxin as well as the velocity analysis of synaptic vesicle sharing between adjacent synapses in hippocampal neurons. Efficiency analysis revealed that the algorithm is able to detect a wide range of velocities and can be used at low signal-to-noise ratios. The present work enables the quantification of axonal transport parameters with high throughput with no a priori assumptions and minimal human intervention.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Katrin Ebert for excellent technical assistance. This work was supported by the Erlanger Leistungsbezogene Anschubfinanzierung und Nachwuchsförderung ELAN Grant Nr. PS-08.09.22.2 and by the Interdisciplinary Center of Clinical Research (IZKF) in Erlangen (Project J5) (both to TWG).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Schwabachanlage 6, 91054, Erlangen, Germany

    Oliver Welzel, Armin M. Stroebel, Johannes Kornhuber & Teja W. Groemer

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Sozialstiftung Bamberg, Buger Straße 80, 96049, Bamberg, Germany

    Jutta Knörr

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  1. Oliver Welzel
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  2. Jutta Knörr
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  3. Armin M. Stroebel
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  4. Johannes Kornhuber
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  5. Teja W. Groemer
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Oliver Welzel.

Additional information

O. Welzel and J. Knörr contributed equally to this work.

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Welzel, O., Knörr, J., Stroebel, A.M. et al. A fast and robust method for automated analysis of axonal transport. Eur Biophys J 40, 1061–1069 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00249-011-0722-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00249-011-0722-3

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