Support for a synaptic chain model of neuronal sequence generation

In songbirds, the remarkable temporal precision of song is generated by a sparse sequence of bursts in the premotor nucleus HVC (proper name). To distinguish between two possible classes of models of neural sequence generation, we carried out intracellular recordings of HVC neurons in singing birds. We found that the subthreshold membrane potential is characterized by a large rapid depolarization 5–10 ms prior to burst onset, consistent with a synaptically-connected chain of neurons in HVC. We found no evidence for the slow membrane potential modulation predicted by models in which burst timing is controlled by subthreshold dynamics. Furthermore, bursts ride on an underlying depolarization of ~10ms duration, likely the result of a regenerative calcium spike within HVC neurons that could facilitate the propagation of activity through a chain network with high temporal precision. Our results shed light on the fundamental mechanisms by which neural circuits can generate complex sequential behaviours.