Theory and simulations of dendritic morphology

The principle of least effective volume, which is postulated in this study for the first time, leads to analytical derivation of dendritic branch angles of pyramidal neurons. A whole dendritic tree with the fundamental parameters, for which several formulae rule the global morphology of dendrites, is created graphically in computer simulations. The computer simulations show close agreements between the global characteristics of simulated dendrites and these of real dendrites. The values of diameters and lengths given by the simulations can be used for the morphological data which are the boundary conditions of the cable equations. This theory also reproduces dendritic morphology of spiny-stellate cells using a different value of the daughter branch ratio. It is expected that pyramidal and spiny-stellate cells are included in the same morphological category.