Abstract
We modeled a segmental oscillator of the timing network that paces the heartbeat of the leech. This model represents a network of six heart interneurons that comprise the basic rhythm-generating network within a single ganglion. This model builds on a previous two cell model (Nadim et al., 1995) by incorporating modifications of intrinsic and synaptic currents based on the results of a realistic waveform voltage-clamp study (Olsen and Calabrese, 1996). Due to these modifications, the new model behaves more similarly to the biological system than the previous model. For example, the slow-wave oscillation of membrane potential that underlies bursting is similar in form and amplitude to that of the biological system. Furthermore, the new model with its expanded architecute demonstrates how coordinating interneurons contribute to the oscillations within a single ganglion, in addition to their role of intersegmental coordination.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 281-302 |
| Number of pages | 22 |
| Journal | Journal of Computational Neuroscience |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2001 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We thank G.S. Cymbalyuk for assistance in preparation of the Appendix and A.E. Tobin for critically reading the manuscript. This work was supported by the National Institute of Health NRSA fellowship NS10130 to A.A.V. Hill and grant NS24072 to R.L. Calabrese.
Keywords
- Central pattern generator
- Half-center oscillator
- Hirudo medicinalis