A quantitative approach to modeling mammalian myelinated nerve fibers for electrical prosthesis design.

Abstract

This paper presents an upgraded cable model of mammalian myelinated nerve fibers in an extracellularly applied field. The kinetics of the nodes is based upon voltage clamp data in rat motor fibers at 37 degrees C, while the resting membrane potential is computed with the Goldman equation. The resulting spike shape, conduction velocity, strength/duration behavior, and absolute and relative refractory period are in good quantitative agreement with published experimental data in mammals at normal body temperature and at 20 degrees C. Results at intermediate temperatures however, suggest that the widely used concept of a constant Q10 for the rate constants is invalid. In addition, the model generates realistic abortive spikes towards the end of the absolute refractory period and it can describe the consequences of repetitive firing. The results stress the advantages of a multiple nonlinear node model even if only time aspects of nerve behavior are under study. It turned out, that the model presented here describes in vivo neural properties relevant for electrical prosthesis design better than previous models in literature.