NMC4 Short Talk: An optogenetic theory of stimulation near criticality
Recent advances in optogenetics allow for stimulation of neurons with sub-millisecond spike jitter and single neuron selectivity. Already this precision has revealed new levels of cortical sensitivity: stimulating tens of neurons can yield changes in the mean firing rate of thousands of similarly tuned neurons. This extreme sensitivity suggests that cortical dynamics are near criticality. Criticality is often studied in neural systems as a non-equilibrium thermodynamic process in which scale-free patterns of activity, called avalanches, emerge between distinct states of spontaneous activity. While criticality is well studied, it is still unclear what these distinct states of spontaneous activity are and what responses we expect from stimulation of this activity. By answering these questions, optogenetic stimulation will become a new avenue for approaching criticality and understanding cortical dynamics. Here, for the first time, we study the effects of optogenetic-like stimulation on a model near criticality. We study a model of Inhibitory/Excitatory (I/E) Leaky Integrate and Fire (LIF) spiking neurons which display a region of high sensitivity as seen in experiments. We find that this region of sensitivity is, indeed, near criticality. We derive the Dynamic Mean Field Theory of this model and find that the distinct states of activity are asynchrony and synchrony. We use our theory to characterize response to various types and strengths of optogenetic stimulation. Our model and theory predict that asynchronous, near-critical dynamics can have two qualitatively different responses to stimulation: one characterized by high sensitivity, discrete event responses, and high trial-to-trial variability, and another characterized by low sensitivity, continuous responses with characteristic frequencies, and low trial-to-trial variability. While both response types may be considered near-critical in model space, networks which are closest to criticality show a hybrid of these response effects.
Three levels of variability in the collective behavior of locusts
Many aspects of collective behavior depend on interactions between conspecifics. This is especially true for the collective motion of locusts, which swarm in millions while maintaining synchrony among individuals. However, whether locusts share and maintain the same socio-behavioral patterns – between groups, individuals and situations – remains an open question. Studying marching locusts under lab conditions, we found that (1) different groups behave differently; (2) locusts within a group homogenize their behavior; and (3) individuals have different socio-behavioral tendencies and context-dependent states. These variability levels suggest that behavioral differences within and among individuals exist, affect others, and shape the collective behavior of the entire group.
Synchrony and Synaptic Signaling in Cerebellar Circuits
The cerebellum permits a wide range of behaviors that involve sensorimotor integration. We have been investigating how specific cellular and synaptic specializations of cerebellar neurons measured in vitro, give rise to circuit activity in vivo. We have investigated these issues by studying Purkinje neurons as well as the large neurons of the mouse cerebellar nuclei, which form the major excitatory premotor projection from the cerebellum. Large CbN cells have ion channels that favor spontaneous action potential firing and GABAA receptors that generate ultra-fast inhibitory synaptic currents, raising the possibility that these biophysical attributes may permit CbN cells to respond differently to the degree of temporal coherence of their Purkinje cell inputs. In vivo, self-initiated motor programs associated with whisking correlates with asynchronous changes in Purkinje cell simple spiking that are asynchronous across the population. The resulting inhibition converges with mossy fiber excitation to yield little change in CbN cell firing, such that cerebellar output is low or cancelled. In contrast, externally applied sensory stimuli elicits a transient, synchronous inhibition of Purkinje cell simple spiking. During the resulting strong disinhibition of CbN cells, sensory-induced excitation from mossy fibers effectively drives cerebellar outputs that increase the magnitude of reflexive whisking. Purkinje cell synchrony, therefore, may be a key variable contributing to the “positive effort” hypothesized by David Marr in 1969 to be necessary for cerebellar control of movement.