Stochasticity in Ca2+ Increase in Spines Enables Robust and Sensitive Information Coding

Takuya Koumura, Hidetoshi Urakubo, Kaoru Ohashi, Masashi Fujii and Shinya Kuroda

PLOS ONE, 2014, vol. 9, issue 6, 1-12

Abstract: A dendritic spine is a very small structure (∼0.1 µm3) of a neuron that processes input timing information. Why are spines so small? Here, we provide functional reasons; the size of spines is optimal for information coding. Spines code input timing information by the probability of Ca2+ increases, which makes robust and sensitive information coding possible. We created a stochastic simulation model of input timing-dependent Ca2+ increases in a cerebellar Purkinje cell's spine. Spines used probability coding of Ca2+ increases rather than amplitude coding for input timing detection via stochastic facilitation by utilizing the small number of molecules in a spine volume, where information per volume appeared optimal. Probability coding of Ca2+ increases in a spine volume was more robust against input fluctuation and more sensitive to input numbers than amplitude coding of Ca2+ increases in a cell volume. Thus, stochasticity is a strategy by which neurons robustly and sensitively code information.

Date: 2014
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:plo:pone00:0099040

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0099040

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