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Applied Mathematics Colloquium

Friday, September 28, 11:30 am
Cullimore Lecture Hall II
New Jersey Institute of Technology

The Role of Anatomical Structure in Determining Activity in Electrically Coupled Neuronal Networks

Farzan Nadim

Department of Mathematical Sciences

New Jersey Institute of Technology

Newark, NJ

Abstract

Gap junctions are involved in transfer of ions and small molecules between cells in many tissues. Electrical signaling via gap junctions (electrical coupling) has been implicated in the generation of synchronous electrical activity. We show that signal transfer between electrically coupled neurons is maximized at an optimal diameter of the coupled processes. We then explore the ramifications of this optimal diameter for signaling in a network of electrically coupled model neurons.