The analysis of synaptically generated traveling waves

J Comput Neurosci. 1998 May;5(2):191-208. doi: 10.1023/a:1008822117809.

Abstract

Mathematical and computational models for the propagation of activity in excitatorily coupled neurons are simulated and analyzed. The basic measurable quantity--velocity--is found for a wide class of models. Numerical bifurcation techniques, asymptotic analysis, and numerical simulations are used to show that there are distinct scaling laws for the velocity as a function of a variety of parameters. In particular, the obvious linear relationships between speed and spatial spread or synaptic decay rate are shown. More surprisingly, it is shown that the velocity scales as a power law with synaptic coupling strength and that the exponent is dependent only on the rising phase of the synapse.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Biophysical Phenomena
  • Biophysics
  • Computer Simulation
  • Humans
  • Models, Neurological*
  • Neural Conduction / physiology
  • Neurons / physiology
  • Synapses / physiology*
  • Time Factors