Synaptic signal transduction aided by noise in a dynamical saturating model.

A generic dynamical model with saturation for neural signal transduction at the synaptic stage is presented. Analysis of this model of a synaptic pathway demonstrates its ability to give rise to stochastic resonance or improvement by noise, at this stage of signal transmission. Beyond the case of the intrinsic threshold nonlinearity of the neuron response, the results extend the feasibility of stochastic resonance to neural saturating dynamics at the synaptic stage. The present results also constitute the exposition of a new type of nonlinear (saturating) dynamics capable of stochastic resonance.