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| Research article summary (published 30 Mar 2009): |
Wide-band information transmission at the calyx of Held.
Full Abstract
We use a mathematical model of the calyx of Held to explore information transmission at this giant glutamatergic synapse. The significant depression of the postsynaptic response to repeated stimulation in vitro is a result of various activity-dependent processes in multiple timescales, which can be reproduced by multiexponential functions in this model. When the postsynaptic current is stimulated by Poisson-distributed spike trains, its amplitude varies considerably with the preceding interspike intervals. Here we quantify the information contained in the postsynaptic current amplitude about preceding interspike intervals and determine the impact of different pre- and postsynaptic factors on information transmission. The mutual information between presynaptic spike times and the amplitude of the postsynaptic response in general decreases as the mean stimulation rate increases, but remains high even at frequencies greater than 100 Hz, unlike at many neocortical synapses. The maintenance of information transmission is attributable largely to vesicle recycling rates at low frequencies of stimulation, shifting to vesicle release probability at high frequencies. Also, at higher frequencies, the synapse operates largely in a release-ready mode in which most release sites contain a release-ready vesicle and release probabilities are low.
Author information
Author/s: Yang, Zhijun (Z); Hennig, Matthias H (MH); Postlethwaite, Michael (M); Forsythe, Ian D (ID); Graham, Bruce P (BP);
Affiliation: Computing Science and Mathematics, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, U.K. zhijun.yang(-atsign-)ed.ac.uk
Grants: (Agency:Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council)
Journal and publication information
Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Journal: Neural computation (Neural Comput), published in United States. (Language: eng)
Reference: 2009-Apr; vol 21 (issue 4) : pp 991-1017
Dates: Created 2009/03/23; Completed 2009/05/11;
PMID: 19018705, status: MEDLINE (last retrieved date: 5/11/2009)
Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.
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Associated Chemicals: Glutamic Acid (56-86-0)Related articles
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