Editing spines (3D)

To combine two spines, use the Merge button:

1. Hold CTRL down and click each spine to be merged OR press CTRL and drag the mouse to draw a marquee around the spines to be merged.
2. Click the Merge button.

You can only merge two spines objects at a time (three or more is not possible).

To separate two spines that are modeled as one spine due to physical proximity, use the Split button.

1. Click the spine you want to split to select it.
2. Click the Split button.

In most cases, the split location is unambiguous and only one split operation is required to obtain the two desired spines. For more complex cases, you may need to perform several Split and Merge operations to obtain a satisfactory model.

1. Select spines to delete:
   • Click the Select All button to select all the spines.
   • To select a single spine, click a spine in the tracing window.
   • To select neighboring spines, press CTRL and draw a marquee (rectangle) around the spines.

Selected spines are displayed with a wireframe. Appearance settings are displayed.

2. Press the Delete key on the keyboard (or click the Remove button) to delete the selected spines.

1. Hold down CTRL and click spines to select them or click the Select All button. Additional options are displayed in the Edit Spines panel.
2. Click the arrow near the colored square to access the Color menu.
3. Select a new color.

1. Click a spine to select it.
2. In the panel, click the Points button. The spine is represented by five points.
3. To change the spine head position, click and drag the point representing the head (second point from top of the spine). You may also move the two points representing the spine neck.

Inspect the spines to verify their assignments. To make the inspection easier:

1. Click Select All.
2. From the Show as drop-down menu, select the Stick type. The sphere at the end of the stick represents the spine head.
3. Click anywhere away from the spines to de-select the spines.
4. Click the spine that is not assigned to the correct branch to select it.
5. Click the Points button. The spine is represented by five points.
6. Click the insertion point (first point starting from the dendrite) to select it then drag it to the centerline of the correct branch. Drag the other points as necessary to obtain a more accurate spine model.