Quantitative ultrastructural analysis of the synapses established by thalamocortical axons in the sensorimotor cortex

We analyzed and quantified different parameters from the synapses established by thalamocortical axons coming from two thalamic nuclei (ventral posteromedial and posterior nuclei) in the somatosensory and motor cortex. This dataset contains pictures from two types of ultrastructural analysis: serial transmission and focused ion beam milling scanning electron microscopy. Thalamocortical axons analyzed in the dataset were labeled with ionthophoretic injections of biotinylated 10 K dextran amine (anterograde tracer) in a small number of neurons and revealed with the glucose oxidase-diaminobenzidine method. Experiments were conducted in vivo in wildtype C57BL/6 adult animals.