Analysis of neurite outgrowth for a laser patterned neuronal culture

We describe a system for patterning neuronal cultures using a weakly focused laser beam. Using this technique, individual cells can be placed at predetermined positions with submicron accuracy, enabling detailed study of neurite outgrowths regulated by various cell contact interactions. Images of the cells are analyzed automatically by an algorithm to detect the soma and neurite outgrowth. The soma detection is based upon gray-level morphological processing, while the neurite outgrowth tracing is based upon the work of Al-Kohafi et al. [1], which has been modified to improve the computational performance. Results on images of embyonic chick forebrain neurons demonstrate the effectiveness of the technique.