Maximum likelihood analysis of spike trains of interacting nerve cells (Q1104265)

Suppose that a neuron is firing spontaneously or that it is firing under the influence of other neurons. Suppose that the data available are the firing times of the neurons present. An ``integrate several inputs and fire model'' is developed and studied empirically. For the model a neuron's firing occurs when an internal state variable crosses a random threshold. This conceptual model leads to maximum likelihood estimates of internal quantities, such as the postsynaptic potentials of the measured influencing neurons, the membrane potential, the absolute threshold and also estimates of derived quantities such as the strength-duration curve and the recovery process of the threshold. The model's validity is examined via an estimate of the conditional firing probability.