Noise Enhancement of Neural Information Processing

Abstract

Cortical neurons in vivo function in highly fluctuating and seemingly noisy conditions, and the understanding of how information is processed in such complex states is still incomplete. In this perspective article, we first overview that an intense “synaptic noise” was measured first in single neurons, and computational models were built based on such measurements. Recent progress in recording techniques has enabled the measurement of highly complex activity in large numbers of neurons in animals and human subjects, and models were also built to account for these complex dynamics. Here, we attempt to link these two cellular and population aspects, where the complexity of network dynamics in awake cortex seems to link to the synaptic noise seen in single cells. We show that noise in single cells, in networks, or structural noise, all participate to enhance responsiveness and boost the propagation of information. We propose that such noisy states are fundamental to providing favorable conditions for information processing at large-scale levels in the brain, and may be involved in sensory perception.