Decoding synchronized oscillations within the brain: Phase-delayed inhibition provides a robust mechanism for creating a sharp synchrony filter

•High threshold or phase-delayed inhibition can both decode synchronized oscillations.•Both mechanisms can create a decoder with a sharp synchrony threshold.•High threshold: synchrony threshold is sensitive to input.•Phase-delayed inhibition: synchrony threshold is more robust.

The widespread presence of synchronized neuronal oscillations within the brain suggests that a mechanism must exist that is capable of decoding such activity. Two realistic designs for such a decoder include: (1) a read-out neuron with a high spike threshold, or (2) a phase-delayed inhibition network motif. Despite requiring a more elaborate network architecture, phase-delayed inhibition has been observed in multiple systems, suggesting that it may provide inherent advantages over simply imposing a high spike threshold. In this work, we use a computational and mathematical approach to investigate the efficacy of the phase-delayed inhibition motif in detecting synchronized oscillations. We show that phase-delayed inhibition is capable of creating a synchrony detector with sharp synchrony filtering properties that depend critically on the time course of inputs. Additionally, we show that phase-delayed inhibition creates a synchrony filter that is far more robust than that created by a high spike threshold.