Slide 22

Plot of the membrane potential in the axon as a function of the membrane potential in the soma just prior to action potential initiation in either real layer 5 pyramidal cells (top) or in our full model of a layer 5 pyramidal cell (below). Note that there is significant variation between the line of equality (red line), especially just before the initiation of an action potential. This variance in membrane potential between the soma and axon will appear as variability in action potential threshold in the soma, owing to the backpropagation of the action potential from the axon into the soma.