Attentional modulation of neuronal variability in circuit models of cortex

• DOI: 10.7554/elife.23978
• Publication Date: 2017-06-07T12:00:14Z
• Authors: Tatjana Kanashiro; Gabriel Koch Ocker; Marlene R Cohen; Brent Doiron
• Keywords: Stimulus (psychology); Biological neural network

The circuit mechanisms behind shared neural variability (noise correlation) and its dependence on state are poorly understood. Visual attention is well-suited to constrain cortical models of response because both increases firing rates their stimulus sensitivity, as well decreases noise correlations. We provide a novel analysis population recordings in rhesus primate visual area V4 showing that single biophysical mechanism may underlie these diverse correlates attention. explore model networks where top-down mediated excitability, distributed across excitatory inhibitory targets, capture the key neuronal Our predict signals primarily affect neurons, whereas neurons more sensitive specific bottom-up inputs. Accounting for trial dependent modulation activity critical step building mechanistic theory cognition.