What are other examples of the Purkinje pattern in nature?
Purkinje cells exhibit the most complex dendritic branches of all
neurons. The dendrites of a Purkinje cell begin with one large branch
that splits into two smaller branches, which further divide into medium
sized branches, that eventually split into many tiny, winding dendrites
in an almost fractal nature. What is so visually striking about a
Purkinje cell is how closely it resembles the shape of a tree. Above
ground, trees have a thick trunk that gradually divides into increasingly
smaller branches. This tree shape, or Purkinje pattern, is found both
microscopically and macroscopically across nature.
In addition to trees and neurons, the Purkinje pattern appears in
nature in antlers, coral, blood vessels, river tributaries, and broccoli,
to name a few. Even beyond nature, we have found virtual ways to
use the Purkinje pattern in phone–tree networks, outlines with bullet
points, and organizational file folders on computers. We use this
structure to add clarity and efficiency to our lives, and we can speculate
that it formed in nature so many times for a similar reason.