Research articleFractal dimension of apical dendritic arborization differs in the superficial and the deep pyramidal neurons of the rat cerebral neocortex

•Comparison and distinguishing of superficial and deep neocortical pyramidal cells.•Morphology and complexity analysis of arborization of the apical dendrite.•Topological parameters of homogeneity of apical dendrites arborization.•Fractal dimension of apical dendrite of superficial cells is higher than in deep ones.

Pyramidal neurons of the mammalian cerebral cortex have specific structure and pattern of organization that involves the presence of apical dendrite. Morphology of the apical dendrite is well-known, but quantification of its complexity still remains open. Fractal analysis has proved to be a valuable method for analyzing the complexity of dendrite morphology. The aim of this study was to establish the fractal dimension of apical dendrite arborization of pyramidal neurons in distinct neocortical laminae by using the modified box-counting method. A total of thirty, Golgi impregnated neurons from the rat brain were analyzed: 15 superficial (cell bodies located within lamina II-III), and 15 deep pyramidal neurons (cell bodies situated within lamina V-VI). Analysis of topological parameters of apical dendrite arborization showed no statistical differences except in total dendritic length (p = 0.02), indicating considerable homogeneity between the two groups of neurons. On the other hand, average fractal dimension of apical dendrite was 1.33 ± 0.06 for the superficial and 1.24 ± 0.04 for the deep cortical neurons, showing statistically significant difference between these two groups (p < 0.001). In conclusion, according to the fractal dimension values, apical dendrites of the superficial pyramidal neurons tend to show higher structural complexity compared to the deep ones.