| Brandt Sebastian |
| Email |
sbrandt physics.wustl.edu |
| Gender |
Male |
| Nationality |
Germany |
| Year of birth |
1977 |
| Department |
Physics Department, CB 1105 |
| University |
Washington University in St. Louis |
| Country (of work) |
United States Of America |
| Simulation Project Title |
Feedback Loops and Winner-Take-All Selection in the Non-mammalian Visual System. |
| Type of model |
Compartmental model based network model |
| Description |
In the visual pathway of non-mammalian vertebrates, the nucleus isthmi (NI) is recurrently
connected with the optic tectum (OT), the main visual center in the midbrain of these species.
It has long been conjectured that this feedback loop performs a winner-take-all selection
rule; however, to-date there is no computational support for this hypothesis. It is the aim of
the proposed project to model the isthmo-tectal feedback loop in regard to its functioning as
a winner-take-all network. |
| Why complementary |
In my current research I model neuronal networks in a rather abstract manner that makes
them tractable to mathematical analysis. Recently, I considered a simplified model of the
feedback loop NI-OT (bifurcation analysis). The model did, however, not include important
aspects of the biological system and provided only limited insight in regard to the
winner-take-all hypothesis. I hope to fill this gap through the formulation and analysis of a
realistic computational model at the summer course. |
| Tutor |
Janet Best |