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Interacting oscillations in neural control of breathing: modeling and qualitative analysis
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Interacting oscillations in neural control of breathing: modeling and qualitative analysis

Jonathan Rubin, Bartholomew Bacak, Yaroslav Molkov, Natalia Shevtsova, Jeffrey Smith and Ilya Rybak
Journal of computational neuroscience, v 30(3), pp 607-632
Jun 2011
PMID: 20927576
url
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10827-010-0281-0View
Published, Version of Record (VoR) Open

Abstract

Human Genetics Neural oscillations Respiratory central pattern generator Phase plane analysis Neurology Neurosciences Biomedicine Coupled oscillators Pre-Bötzinger Complex Theory of Computation Parafacial respiratory group
In mammalian respiration, late-expiratory (late-E, or pre-inspiratory) oscillations emerge in abdominal motor output with increasing metabolic demands (e.g., during hypercapnia, hypoxia, etc.). These oscillations originate in the retrotrapezoid nucleus/parafacial respiratory group (RTN/pFRG) and couple with the respiratory oscillations generated by the interacting neural populations of the Bötzinger (BötC) and pre-Bötzinger (pre-BötC) complexes, representing the kernel of the respiratory central pattern generator. Recently, we analyzed experimental data on the generation of late-E oscillations and proposed a large-scale computational model that simulates the possible interactions between the BötC/pre-BötC and RTN/pFRG oscillations under different conditions. Here we describe a reduced model that maintains the essential features and architecture of the large-scale model, but relies on simplified activity-based descriptions of neural populations. This simplification allowed us to use methods of dynamical systems theory, such as fast-slow decomposition, bifurcation analysis, and phase plane analysis, to elucidate the mechanisms and dynamics of synchronization between the RTN/pFRG and BötC/pre-BötC oscillations. Three physiologically relevant behaviors have been analyzed: emergence and quantal acceleration of late-E oscillations during hypercapnia, transformation of the late-E activity into a biphasic-E activity during hypercapnic hypoxia, and quantal slowing of BötC/pre-BötC oscillations with the reduction of pre-BötC excitability. Each behavior is elicited by gradual changes in excitatory drives or other model parameters, reflecting specific changes in metabolic and/or physiological conditions. Our results provide important theoretical insights into interactions between RTN/pFRG and BötC/pre-BötC oscillations and the role of these interactions in the control of breathing under different metabolic conditions.

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Mathematical & Computational Biology
Neurosciences
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