Action potential initiation in a two-compartment model of pyramidal neuron mediated by dendritic Ca2+ spike

Dendritic Ca2+ spike endows cortical pyramidal cell with powerful ability of synaptic integration, which is critical for neuronal computation. Here we propose a two-compartment conductance-based model to investigate how the Ca2+ activity of apical dendrite participates in the action potential (AP) initiation to affect the firing properties of pyramidal neurons. We have shown that the apical input with sufficient intensity triggers a dendritic Ca2+ spike, which significantly boosts dendritic inputs as it propagates to soma. Such event instantaneously shifts the limit cycle attractor of the neuron and results in a burst of APs, which makes its firing rate reach a plateau steady-state level. Delivering current to two chambers simultaneously increases the level of neuronal excitability and decreases the threshold of input-output relation. Here the back-propagating APs facilitate the initiation of dendritic Ca2+ spike and evoke BAC firing. These findings indicate that the proposed model is capable of reproducing in vitro experimental observations. By determining spike initiating dynamics, we have provided a fundamental link between dendritic Ca2+ spike and output APs, which could contribute to mechanically interpreting how dendritic Ca2+ activity participates in the simple computations of pyramidal neuron.