arXiv subjects

Katharina Anna Wilmes

Publications and source records attributed to Katharina Anna Wilmes.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

Two types of pyramidal cells and their role in temporal processing

Recent work has provided new insights into the temporal specialization of Intratelencephalic (IT) and Pyramidal tract neurons (PT). However, functional and anatomical differences of IT and PT have not been connected yet. This perspective article contributes by highlighting empirical studies about the connectivity of IT and PT as well as their specialization in sensory and motor processing in diverse brain regions. We further review conceptual models that would align with the connectivity motif. We conclude that further research is needed to understand the role of the unidirectional connectivity from IT to PT in temporal processing and suggest concrete experiments.

q-bio.NC↗

arXiv2024

Prospective and retrospective coding in cortical neurons

Brains can process sensory information from different modalities at astonishing speed; this is surprising as the integration of inputs through the membrane of each individual neuron already causes a delayed response. Neuronal recordings {\em in vitro} reveal a possible explanation for this fast processing, in terms of individual neurons advancing their output firing rates with respect to the input, a concept which we refer to as prospective coding. The underlying mechanisms of prospective coding, however, are not completely understood. We propose a mechanistic explanation for individual neurons advancing their output on the level of single action potentials and instantaneous firing rates. We show that the spike generation mechanism can be the source for prospective (advanced) or retrospective (delayed) responses. A simplified Hodgkin-Huxley model identifies sodium inactivation as a source for prospective firing, controlling the timing of the neuron's output as a function of the voltage and its temporal derivative. We further show that slow adaptation processes, such as spike-frequency adaptation or deactivating dendritic currents, represent mechanisms generating prospective firing for inputs that undergo slow temporal modulations. In general, we show that adaptation processes at different time scales can cause advanced neuronal responses to time-varying inputs that are modulated on the corresponding time scales.

q-bio.NC↗

arXiv2022

Current State and Future Directions for Learning in Biological Recurrent Neural Networks: A Perspective Piece

We provide a brief review of the common assumptions about biological learning with findings from experimental neuroscience and contrast them with the efficiency of gradient-based learning in recurrent neural networks. The key issues discussed in this review include: synaptic plasticity, neural circuits, theory-experiment divide, and objective functions. We conclude with recommendations for both theoretical and experimental neuroscientists when designing new studies that could help bring clarity to these issues.

q-bio.NC↗