Neural Network Analysis of Distributed Representations of Dynamical Sensory-Motor Transformations in the Leech

Interneurons in leech ganglia receive multiple sensory inputs and make synaptic contacts with many motor neurons. These "hidden" units coordinate several different behaviors. We used physiological and anatomical constraints to construct a model of the local bending reflex. Dynamical networks were trained on experimentally derived input-output patterns using recurrent back-propagation. Units in the model were modified to include electrical synapses and multiple synaptic time constants.