Relating the sequential dynamics of excitatory neural networks to synaptic cellular automata

• Published in: Chaos (Woodbury, N.Y.) N.Y.), 2011-12, Vol.21 (4), p.043124-043124-13
• Main Authors: Nekorkin, V. I., Dmitrichev, A. S., Kasatkin, D. V., Afraimovich, V. S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Action Potentials - physiology; Animals; Biological Clocks - physiology; Computer Simulation; Humans; Models, Neurological; Nerve Net - physiology; Neurons - physiology; Nonlinear Dynamics; Synaptic Transmission - physiology
• ISSN: 1054-1500; 1089-7682
• DOI: 10.1063/1.3657384

We have developed a new approach for the description of sequential dynamics of excitatory neural networks. Our approach is based on the dynamics of synapses possessing the short-term plasticity property. We suggest a model of such synapses in the form of a second-order system of nonlinear ODEs. In the framework of the model two types of responses are realized—the fast and the slow ones. Under some relations between their timescales a cellular automaton (CA) on the graph of connections is constructed. Such a CA has only a finite number of attractors and all of them are periodic orbits. The attractors of the CA determine the regimes of sequential dynamics of the original neural network, i.e., itineraries along the network and the times of successive firing of neurons in the form of bunches of spikes. We illustrate our approach on the example of a Morris-Lecar neural network.