Intrinsic plasticity underlies malleability of neural network heterogeneity

Diversity exists throughout biology, playing an important role in maintaining robustness and stability. The same is true of the brain, as has become increasingly apparent in recent years with the accumulation of datasets of unparalleled resolution. These datasets show widespread neural heterogeneity, spanning cells, circuits and system dynamics, marking it as an unavoidable component of the brain’s composition. Recent experiments found declines in heterogeneity amongst neurons may accompany pathological states. While heterogeneity has been linked to stability, robustness and increased computational potential, the loss of biophysical diversity was found conducive to the onset of seizure-like activity, suggesting an important functional role. Despite this, how changes in heterogeneity arise remains unknown. Oftentimes considered a static metaparameter resulting from solely genetic disposition, heterogeneity is, in fact, a highly dynamic property of biological networks arising from various sources. Here, we consider this through the lens of intrinsic plasticity, the activity-dependent modulation of neuron biophysical properties, which we propose allows the degree of biophysical diversity to fluctuate in time. Using a network of Poisson neurons endowed with intrinsic plasticity, we combine analytical and numerical approaches to measure the effect of input statistics on the excitability of individual cells, and how this translates into changes in network heterogeneity at the population scale. Our results indicate that, through intrinsic plasticity, diversity in synaptic inputs promotes heterogeneity in cell-to-cell excitability due to changes in the statistics of presynaptic firing rates, and network topology. In contrast, whenever the statistics of synaptic input between cells were too similar, intrinsic plasticity promoted the decline in heterogeneity. Further, we show that changes in heterogeneity can coexist with degeneracy in the firing rate between neurons. Taken together, understanding how input statistics affect neuronal network heterogeneity may provide key insights into brain function, resilience and the manipulability of neural diversity through intrinsic plasticity.