Modeling the Modulation of Neuronal Bursting: A Singularity Theory Approach

Exploiting the specific structure of neuron conductance-based models, the paper investigates the mathematical modeling of neuronal bursting modulation. The proposed approach combines singularity theory and geometric singular perturbations to capture the geometry of multiple time-scale attractors in the neighborhood of high-codimension singularities. We detect a three–time-scale bursting attractor in the universal unfolding of the winged cusp singularity and discuss the physiological relevance of the bifurcation and unfolding parameters in determining a physiological modulation of bursting. The results suggest generality and simplicity in the organizing role of the winged cusp singularity for the global dynamics of conductance-based models.