Nieland, ThomasLogan, David J.Saulnier, JessicaLam, DanielJohnson, CarolineRoot, David E.Carpenter, Anne E.Sabatini, Bernardo2014-04-112014Nieland, Thomas J. F., David J. Logan, Jessica Saulnier, Daniel Lam, Caroline Johnson, David E. Root, Anne E. Carpenter, and Bernardo L. Sabatini. 2014. “High Content Image Analysis Identifies Novel Regulators of Synaptogenesis in a High-Throughput RNAi Screen of Primary Neurons.” PLoS ONE 9 (3): e91744. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0091744. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0091744.1932-6203http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:12064465The formation of synapses, the specialized points of chemical communication between neurons, is a highly regulated developmental process fundamental to establishing normal brain circuitry. Perturbations of synapse formation and function causally contribute to human developmental and degenerative neuropsychiatric disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease, intellectual disability, and autism spectrum disorders. Many genes controlling synaptogenesis have been identified, but lack of facile experimental systems has made systematic discovery of regulators of synaptogenesis challenging. Thus, we created a high-throughput platform to study excitatory and inhibitory synapse development in primary neuronal cultures and used a lentiviral RNA interference library to identify novel regulators of synapse formation. This methodology is broadly applicable for high-throughput screening of genes and drugs that may rescue or improve synaptic dysfunction associated with cognitive function and neurological disorders.en-USBiology and Life SciencesAnatomyNervous SystemNeuroanatomyConnectomicsGeneticsGenomicsFunctional GenomicsNeuroscienceCellular NeuroscienceNeuronal MorphologyDevelopmental NeuroscienceComputer and Information SciencesSoftware EngineeringSoftware ToolsEngineering and TechnologySpecimen Preparation and TreatmentMechanical Treatment of SpecimensSpecimen DisruptionElectroporationJournal Article2014-04-1110.1371/journal.pone.0091744