Dendritic effects in networks of electrically coupled fast-spiking interneurons

We examine how the location of weak electrical coupling affects phase-locking in a pair of model fast-spiking interneurons. Each model neuron consists of a somatic compartment and a passive dendritic compartment. At relatively low frequencies, the phase-locking structure for somatic and dendritic coupling is qualitatively the same: below a critical frequency, stable synchronous and anti-phase activity co-exist, and only synchrony is stable above this critical frequency. At higher frequencies, the synchronous state remains stable for somatic coupling, but for dendritic coupling, the synchronous state becomes unstable and anti-phase oscillations become stable. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.