“Grassroots” Neurons Wire and Fire Together for Dominance in the Brain

Inside the brain, an unpredictable race—like a political campaign—is being run. Multiple candidates, each with a network of supporters, have organized themselves into various left- and right-wing clusters—like grassroots political teams working feverishly to reinforce a vision that bands them together. While scientists know that neurons in the brain anatomically organize themselves into these network camps, or clusters, the implications of such groupings on neural dynamics have remained unclear until now.

Using mathematical modeling, two researchers from the University of Pittsburgh have found that neurons team up together to sway particular outcomes in the brain and take over the nervous system in the name of their preferred action or behavior. The findings will be published in the November print issue of Nature Neuroscience. 

“Through complex mathematical equations, we organized neurons into clustered networks and immediately saw that our model produced a rich dynamic wherein neurons in the same groups were active together,” said Brent Doiron, assistant professor of mathematics.