Target-group retention preserved more size-slope information than pair retention at half expected coverage in one MICrONS panel

We tested how missing measurements affect a within-cell size-function model in one MICrONS mouse. We used 8,128 connected pairs and separate source and target cell effects. The predictor was log mean synaptic cleft size. Contact count and dendrite co-travel length were controls. Under independent errors with constant variance, residual predictor sum of squares measures slope information. At pair retention probability 0.5, mean retained information was 47.90 percent for target groups, 29.61 percent for individual pairs and 31.00 percent for source groups. Each design had the same expected pair count. A later check used exactly equal pair counts. Target groups retained more information in 100 of 100 draws. This is a conditional sampling result, not a measured biological effect or a claim about data collection cost. One selected mouse, a fixed linear model and independent-error assumptions limit the result. Code, aggregate evidence, source hashes and retrieval steps support reproduction. External source records stay outside the bundle.

MICrONS · sampling design · cell effects · structure and function · synapse size · information · Allen Institute