Controlling neuronal sensitivity to synchronous input

Abstract Neurons in vivo are continuously bombarded by synaptic input—so how can they detect particular inputs against this background of synaptic activity? We study how modulating background synaptic input can change neuronal sensitivity to a subset of synchronized inputs. We find that changes in net excitation or inhibition vary both the probability of detecting synchronous input and also the probability of a false-positive response. Varying the level of background input can modulate probability of synchrony detection independently of false-positive probability.