Jonathan Rubin
Rhythmic activity in central pattern generators
Abstract
The idea of a central pattern generator (CPG), consisting
of a collection of neurons that is able to generate a repetitive,
rhythmic pattern of activity in the absence of input, is quite old,
and CPGs appear to underlie behaviors such as respiration, locomotion,
and mastication. Nonetheless, many open questions remain about the
mechanisms through which intrinsic cellular properties interact with
properties of coupling within CPGs to select rhythms and to modulate
phases within rhythms. In this talk, I will review dynamical systems
ideas underlying certain forms of rhythmic activity in model neurons
and will discuss new results on rhythmic mechanisms in single cells,
based on evidence from the mammalian respiratory brain stem, and in
small networks of cells.
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