Optical densitometry of neuronal fibers
Miquel Vila
Published: 2023-10-19 DOI: 10.17504/protocols.io.8epv5x3nng1b/v1
Abstract
Optical densitometry of striatal neuronal fibers in the rodent brain
Steps
1.
Scan the immunostained serial coronal sections covering different caudorostral levels of the brain regions (for striatum, 4 sections/animal) with an Epson Perfection v750 Pro scanner.
2.
Open the resulting images in ImageJ (RRID:SCR_003070,https://imagej.net/).
3.
With the free hand selections tool, draw the region of interest (e.g. striatum, nucleus accumbens and olfactory tubercle) and measure the optical density (pixel brightness). Then draw a region of interest in a blank area (e.g. cortex) and also measure the optical density.
4.
Calculate the optical density or absorbance using the formula: -log10 (Striatum Intensity/Cortex Intensity).
