The relationship between neural avalanches and neural oscillations

Abstract

Recent experiments found that the spontaneous cortical activity showed a dynamic firing pattern called neuronal avalanches, in which the distribution of firing activity followed a power law and the firing pattern was accompanied by nested θ-and β-/γ-oscillations. These results provided important evidence that neural oscillations could be formed during neuronal avalanches. The relationship between neuronal avalanches and oscillations has not been discussed in previous models. In this paper, we analyzed the relationship between neuronal avalanches and nested oscillations. Our results showed that the excitation-inhibition balance was a crucial mechanism for the formation of oscillation, but it was not enough for neuronal avalanches. The excitation-inhibition balance and synaptic plasticity were both necessary for a neural network to access the critical state and form neuronal avalanches. With the dynamic excitatory and inhibitory synaptic transmission processes and STDP rule, neuronal avalanches and nested oscillations could emerge simultaneously in a neural network.