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Simulation of miniature endplate potentials in neuromuscular junctions by using a cellular automaton

Author

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  • Avella, Oscar Javier
  • Muñoz, José Daniel
  • Fayad, Ramón

Abstract

Miniature endplate potentials are recorded in the neuromuscular junction when the acetylcholine contents of one or a few synaptic vesicles are spontaneously released into the synaptic cleft. Since their discovery by Fatt and Katz in 1952, they have been among the paradigms in neuroscience. Those potentials are usually simulated by means of numerical approaches, such as Brownian dynamics, finite differences and finite element methods. Hereby we propose that diffusion cellular automata can be a useful alternative for investigating them. To illustrate this point, we simulate a miniature endplate potential by using experimental parameters. Our model reproduces the potential shape, amplitude and time course. Since our automaton is able to track the history and interactions of each single particle, it is very easy to introduce non-linear effects with little computational effort. This makes cellular automata excellent candidates for simulating biological reaction–diffusion processes, where no other external forces are involved.

Suggested Citation

  • Avella, Oscar Javier & Muñoz, José Daniel & Fayad, Ramón, 2008. "Simulation of miniature endplate potentials in neuromuscular junctions by using a cellular automaton," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 387(2), pages 694-702.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:phsmap:v:387:y:2008:i:2:p:694-702
    DOI: 10.1016/j.physa.2007.09.041
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    Cited by:

    1. Correale, T.G. & Monteiro, L.H.A., 2016. "On the dynamics of axonal membrane: Ion channel as the basic unit of a deterministic model," Applied Mathematics and Computation, Elsevier, vol. 291(C), pages 292-302.

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