Sequences of events are ubiquitous in sensory, motor, and cognitive function. Key computational operations, including pattern recognition, event prediction, and plasticity, involve neural discrimination of spatio-temporal sequences. Here we show that synaptically-driven reaction diffusion pathways on dendrites can perform sequence discrimination on behaviorally relevant time-scales. We used abstract signaling models to show that selectivity arises when inputs at successive locations are aligned with, and amplified by, propagating chemical waves triggered by previous inputs. We incorporated biological detail using sequential synaptic input onto spines in morphologically, electrically, and chemically detailed pyramidal neuronal models based on rat data.
Model Type: Synapse; Dendrite; Neuron or other electrically excitable cell
Region(s) or Organism(s): Hippocampus
Cell Type(s): Hippocampus CA1 pyramidal GLU cell
Currents: I A; I Na,t; I L high threshold
Genes: Nav1.7 SCN9A
Model Concept(s): Pattern Recognition; Reaction-diffusion; Synaptic Plasticity; Signaling pathways; Calcium dynamics
Simulation Environment: MOOSE/PyMOOSE
Implementer(s): Bhalla, Upinder S [bhalla at ncbs.res.in]
References:
Bhalla US. (2017). Synaptic input sequence discrimination on behavioral timescales mediated by reaction-diffusion chemistry in dendrites. eLife. 6 [PubMed]