Temperature Influences on the Dynamics of Neuronal Activity

Living organisms are subject to daily fluctuations in temperature. Given that these changes are often unregulated, their effect on neuronal performance is significant to many functions crucial for the survival of many species. In this study, the focus is on the influence of temperature on the transition between a tonic firing regime (steady spiking at a fixed rate) and a bursting one (sequences of spikes followed by a period of quiescence). This particular transition is of major interest, because it is associated with several functional and pathological neuronal conditions, including sleep-wake transitions and neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. To obtain data regarding this relationship, computer simulations were conducted using the Huber-Braun model equations which allowed for mimicking of various dynamical states with features similar to those observed in real neurons. The results show a positive relationship between temperature and the firing rate of action potentials. We also found a positive relationship between temperature and the parameter space area in which the neuron behaves in a bursting state. These results point at temperature as a possible mechanism for altering both the firing rate of neurons and the tonic-to-bursting transitions