The effects of cholinergic neuromodulation on neuronal phase-response curves of modeled cortical neurons

The response of an oscillator to perturbations is described by its phase-response curve (PRC), which is related to the type of bifurcation leading from rest to tonic spiking. In a recent experimental study, we have shown that the type of PRC in cortical pyramidal neurons can be switched by cholinergic neuromodulation from type II (biphasic) to type I (monophasic). We explored how intrinsic mechanisms affected by acetylcholine influence the PRC using three different types of neuronal models: a theta neuron, single-compartment neurons and a multi-compartment neuron. In all of these models a decrease in the amount of a spike-frequency adaptation current was a necessary and sufficient condition for the shape of the PRC to change from biphasic (type II) to purely positive (type I).