The Neuron Navigator: Exploring the information pathway through the neural maze

Abstract

Recent advances in microscopic imaging technology have enabled neuroscientists to obtain unprecedentedly clear images of neurons. To extract additional knowledge from the tangled neurons, for example, their connective relationships, is key to understanding how information is processed and transmitted within the brain. In this paper, we will introduce our recent endeavor, the Neuron Navigator (NNG), which integrates a 3D neuron image database into an easy-to-use visual interface. Via a flexible and user-friendly interface, NNG is designed to help researchers analyze and observe the connectivity within the neural maze and discover possible pathways. With NNG's 3D neuron image database, researchers can perform volumetric searches using the location of neural terminals, or the occupation of neuron volumes within the 3D brain space. Also, the presence of the neurons under a combination of spatial restrictions can be shown as well. NNG is a result of a multi-discipline collaboration between neuroscientists and computer scientists, and NNG has now been implemented on a coordinated brain space, that being, the Drosophila (fruit fly) brain. NNG is accessible through: http://211.73.64.34/NNG.