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Updated: May 22, 2026

Real-time Electrophysiology: Using Closed-loop Protocols to Probe Neuronal Dynamics and Beyond
Published on: June 24, 2015
Bistability and spatiotemporal irregularity in neuronal networks with nonlinear synaptic transmission
Gianluigi Mongillo1, David Hansel, Carl van Vreeswijk
1Laboratoire de Neurophysique et Physiologie, CNRS UMR 8119, Université Paris Descartes, 75270 Paris cedex 06, France.
Abstract:
We present a mean-field theory for spiking networks operating in the balanced excitation-inhibition regime, with synapses displaying short-term plasticity. The theory reveals a novel mechanism for bistability which relies on the nonlinearity of the synaptic interactions. As synaptic nonlinearity is mainly controlled by the spiking rates, the different states are stabilized by dynamically generated changes in the noise level. Thus, in both states, the network operates in the fluctuation-driven regime, producing activity patterns characterized by strong spatiotemporal irregularity.
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