Efficient representations of fast dynamic stimuli in populations of ON- and OFF-cells

01/09/2024 to 31/08/2027

Splitting information processing into separate ON/OFF pathways is a common design pattern in sensory systems. This allows to encode increases and decreases of stimulus amplitudes with lower average firing rates and consequently is energetically more efficient compared to dense codes typically found at the level of receptor neurons. The reduced firing rates, however, pose a severe problem for encoding dynamic stimuli with frequency components much higher than typical firing rates. For the electrosensory system of electric fish we know about the relevance of such fast stimuli in the context of courtship behavior. How is this possible despite intrinsic noise and limited number of neurons? Here we would like to address the question about the optimal design of a population of ON/OFF neurons for encoding high-frequency stimuli. To this end we combine electrophysiological experiments on the electrosensory system of weakly electric fish with analytical and numerical modeling approaches that allow to gain general insights into this fundamental problem.