Biological Computer Modeling / Biological Computer Simulation
Siamak Haghipour; Seyed Mohammad Reza Hashemi Golpayegani; Seyed Mohammad Firouzabadi; Sirous Momenzadeh
Volume 3, Issue 3 , June 2009, , Pages 227-241
Abstract
The procedure of pain formation embarks on primary sensory neurons and then ends in central nervous system which is the first stage in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. Nowadays the great challenge of some researchers for pain control has been to elucidate the mechanisms that are able to switch the ...
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The procedure of pain formation embarks on primary sensory neurons and then ends in central nervous system which is the first stage in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord. Nowadays the great challenge of some researchers for pain control has been to elucidate the mechanisms that are able to switch the state of the dorsal horn of the spinal cord from an unwanted state to a favorite one. In order to achieve such an aim, a model of the function of the dorsal horn of the spinal cord is extracted in order to be able to control the created pains with changing the parameters of the aforementioned model. In this study a cybernetic model is presented with the aid of bifurcation methodologies and reconstructing the dynamics linked with the process of pain formation via clinical experiment that can express different states in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord as normal, suppressed, sensitized, the functionality of memory, the effect of other primary afferents and the effect of descending signals. Input signals in this model consist of thermal stimulation degree proportional to action potential firing rate from Ab afferents, inhibitory descending signals from midbrain and inhibitory or excitatory descending signal from thalamus and cortex and the output signal is the action potential firing rate from transmission cells in dorsal horn of the spinal cord proportional to pain level have been sensed. The significant and remarkable characteristic of this model is applying a cybernetical model based on a sequence of input-output data which can obviate the drawbacks of other models in which simplification and reduction of terms reduce the operation of components of a system. On the other hand, unlike previous models which have been modeled based on membrane (slow) potential, this model is based on the action potential firing rate from transmission cells of the dorsal horn of the spinal cord that has the adaptability with cellular recording as well as having a higher accuracy.
