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Noisy Synaptic Conductance: Bug or a Feature?
Dmitri A Rusakov1, Leonid P Savtchenko1, Peter E Latham2
1Queen Square UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.
Trends in Neurosciences
|May 28, 2020
Summary
Synaptic noise, or variable neurotransmitter release, can surprisingly enhance information transmission in the brain. This variability is crucial for efficient brain computation despite the energetic costs of neural signaling.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Computational Neuroscience
- Synaptic Plasticity
Background:
- Action potentials often fail to trigger neurotransmitter release.
- Synaptic conductance changes are highly variable even when release occurs.
- This variability appears inefficient given the energy demands of neural signaling.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of synaptic noise in information transmission.
- To explore how synaptic variability impacts neural computation.
- To understand the balance between efficiency and information processing in the brain.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on synaptic transmission and neural coding.
- Analysis of theoretical models of synaptic noise.
- Discussion of experimental evidence regarding synaptic variability.
Main Results:
- Synaptic noise can improve information transmission under specific conditions.
- Variability enhances information transmission per release, relevant for energy-constrained brain computation.
- Noise plays both beneficial and detrimental roles in synaptic function.
Conclusions:
- Synaptic noise is not merely inefficiency but a factor that can optimize neural information processing.
- Understanding synaptic variability is key to comprehending brain computation and its energetic constraints.
- Further research is needed to fully elucidate the complex roles of synaptic noise.
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