Computational roles of plastic probabilistic synapses

Milton Llera Montero, Joao Sacramento, Rui Ponte Costa

Research output: Contribution to journalReview article (Academic Journal)peer-review

17 Citations (Scopus)
383 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The probabilistic nature of synaptic transmission has remained enigmatic. However, recent developments have started to shed light on why the brain may rely on probabilistic synapses. Here, we start out by reviewing experimental evidence on the specificity and plasticity of synaptic response statistics. Next, we overview different computational perspectives on the function of plastic probabilistic synapses for constrained, statistical and deep learning. We highlight that all of these views require some form of optimisation of probabilistic synapses, which has recently gained support from theoretical analysis of long-term synaptic plasticity experiments. Finally, we contrast these different computational views and propose avenues for future research. Overall, we argue that the time is ripe for a better understanding of the computational functions of probabilistic synapses.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)90-97
Number of pages8
JournalCurrent Opinion in Neurobiology
Volume54
Early online date8 Oct 2018
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Feb 2019

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