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Updated: May 22, 2026

Computational Modeling of Retinal Neurons for Visual Prosthesis Research - Fundamental Approaches
Published on: June 21, 2022
The Morris-Lecar neuron model embeds a leaky integrate-and-fire model
Susanne Ditlevsen1, Priscilla Greenwood
1Department of Mathematical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 5, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark. susanne@math.ku.dk
Abstract:
We show that the stochastic Morris-Lecar neuron, in a neighborhood of its stable point, can be approximated by a two-dimensional Ornstein-Uhlenbeck (OU) modulation of a constant circular motion. The associated radial OU process is an example of a leaky integrate-and-fire (LIF) model prior to firing. A new model constructed from a radial OU process together with a simple firing mechanism based on detailed Morris-Lecar firing statistics reproduces the Morris-Lecar Interspike Interval (ISI) distribution, and has the computational advantages of a LIF. The result justifies the large amount of attention paid to the LIF models.
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