IMAGING OF CALCIUM INSIDE DENDRITES AND SPINES - GOALS, ISSUES AND PERSPECTIVES

The growing interest in dendritic spines in recent years originates fr om both the realization that the spine is likely to be the site where long-term plastic changes in synaptic properties take place, and that imaging methods are available which allow, for the first time, the stu dy of these changes in the living dendritic spine. This report briefly summarizes methodological and biological issues associated with the s tudy of dendritic spines in living tissue. The combined use of electri cal and imaging methods for the study of dendritic spines certainly wi ll contribute to a better understanding of synaptic integration and pl asticity.