Does adaptation cause the decay in time course of cell response? A modeling approach

An adaptation model for the level of the ganglion cell in the retina is presented. The model assumes separated adaptation mechanisms for each of the receptive field regions. The adaptation occurs before the subtraction of these two regions´ responses is performed. According to the model the decay in time course of each region response reflects its adaptation process. The response is assumed to follow the Naka-Rushton equation. The mathematical description of the adaptation, according to the model, is the change of the semi saturation constant as a function of illumination and time. Simulations of the model show a good agreement with a wide variety of physiological studies. The model appears as having several compressing advantages.