"Simple cells in layer 4 of the primary visual cortex of the cat show contrast-invariant orientation tuning, in which the amplitude of the peak response is proportional to the stimulus contrast but the width of the tuning curve hardly changes with contrast. This study uses a detailed model of spiny stellate cells (SSCs) from cat area 17 to explain this property. The model integrates our experimental data, including morphological and intrinsic membrane properties and the number and spatial distribution of four major synaptic input sources of the SSC: the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN) and three cortical sources. ... The model response is in close agreement with experimental results, in terms of both output spikes and membrane voltage (amplitude and fluctuations), with reasonable exceptions given that recurrent connections were not incorporated."
Model Type: Neuron or other electrically excitable cell
Cell Type(s): Neocortex spiny stellate cell
Currents: I Na,t; I A; I K; I K,Ca; I Calcium
Model Concept(s): Pattern Recognition; Activity Patterns; Parameter Fitting; Active Dendrites; Synaptic Integration; Vision
Simulation Environment: NEURON
References:
Banitt Y, Martin KA, Segev I. (2007). A biologically realistic model of contrast invariant orientation tuning by thalamocortical synaptic depression. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. 27 [PubMed]
Anderson JC, Douglas RJ, Martin KA, Nelson JC. (1994). Map of the synapses formed with the dendrites of spiny stellate neurons of cat visual cortex. The Journal of comparative neurology. 341 [PubMed]
Anderson JC, Douglas RJ, Martin KA, Nelson JC. (1994). Synaptic output of physiologically identified spiny stellate neurons in cat visual cortex. The Journal of comparative neurology. 341 [PubMed]
Banitt Y, Martin KA, Segev I. (2005). Depressed responses of facilitatory synapses. Journal of neurophysiology. 94 [PubMed]