Contribution of different ion currents to generation of repetitive action potentials: A study by numerical experiment

A model of electrical activity in the somatic membrane of dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons of the rat was constructed from the experimental data about magnitudes and kinetic parameters of individual ion currents. Numerical experiments indicated several types of response to a short depolarizing pulse of the membrane potential, depending on the densities of voltage-dependent ion currents, and also distinct role of different currents in generation of repetitive responses. It was shown that activation of low-threshold calcium current and inactivating potassium current are most significant for the generation of repetitive responses to a single pulse.