Neuronal population model for the pupil-size effect

Abstract

The human pupil has been widely studied as an example of nonlinear biological systems. Many systems, or “black box,” models have been proposed to describe the nonlinear phenomena called “pupillary escape,” “pupillary capture,” the response asymmetry, and, more recently, the “pupil-size effect.” A new neuronal population model is given here which is more homeomorphic than previous models, while retaining the accurate description of the nonlinear responses of the pupil. A signal controlling steady-state pupil size is used to control the recruitment of neuron populations from an inverse “Henneman-coded” pool. Multiple configurations of this neuronal pool are explored by comparing experimental data with computer simulations of the model.