A two pathway model for tonic suppressed-by-contrast cells in the cat retina.

A two pathway spatiotemporal model is proposed to describe the function of tonic suppressed-by-contrast cells of the cat retina. The model is able to describe the experimentally determined responses of such neurons to drifting sinusoidal gratings. It is also able to predict their responses to alternating sinusoidal gratings and flashing or moving spots of light, and these predictions resemble experimental observations, at least qualitatively. The model is physiologically plausible, it can be used to summarize the dynamic responses of the tonic suppressed-by-contrast cells of the cat and potentially to account for the responses of the suppressed-by-contrast cells of other species.