ModelDB/showModel.cshtml

Westerfield, Joyner, and Moore. (1978). Temperature-sensitive conduction failure
at axon branch points. J. Neurophysiol. 41: 1-8.

This model reproduces figure 2C & 2D. An action potential, generated in the
small (40 um) branch, fails to invade the large axon (250 um) on the first
run at 7 degC but does invade when the temperature is reduced to 5 degC for
the second run. As discussed in the paper, the experimental values for the
amplitude and rate of rise of the action potential were quite dependent on the
physiological condition of the axon. The same is true for the value of the
critical temperature as can be seen in the simulation when the initial condition
(resting potential) is altered. For this simulation the resting potential
was depolarised from -65 to -64 mV as a consequence of changing the leakage
reversal potential from  el_hh = -50.183629 to -54.401079 (see the
init procedure in the mosinit.hoc file).

The original simulations were done with a Fortran program employing an
extension of the implicit integration method of Crank and Nicholson written by
Joyner for a branching axon.

The NEURON implementation of this model was prepared by Michael Hines.
Questions about details of this implementation should be addressed to him
at michael.hines@yale.edu.