Amplitude modulation in the stellate microcircuit of the cochlear nucleus

This paper presents the amplitude modulated coding behaviour in a biophysically-realistic neural network model of the cochlear nucleus. It focuses specifically on the microcircuit of T stellate cells, with three inhibitory interneurons. T stellate cells provide a robust spectral representation of auditory information, and enhanced coding of temporal information (especially the pitch in complex environments [1]). The model contains three inhibitory interneurons, each controlling the rate and temporal response of T stellate cells. Despite saturation of their characteristic frequency, the ability to code temporal information is not disabled. The optimal coding of amplitude modulation is still provided across the network, most specifically in lateral sidebands around the carrier frequency.