Abstract
Balance between excitatory and inhibitory inputs is a key feature of cortical dynamics. Such balance is arguably preserved in dendritic branches, yet its underlying mechanism and functional roles are still unknown. Here, by considering computational models of heterosynaptic spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP), we show that the detailed excitatory/inhibitory balance on dendritic branch is robustly achieved through heterosynaptic interaction between excitatory and inhibitory synapses. The acquired dendritic balance enables neuron to perform change detection, due to functional specialization at each branch. Furthermore, heterosynaptic STDP explains how maturation of inhibitory neurons modulates selectivity of excitatory neurons in critical period plasticity of binocular matching. Our results propose heterosynaptic STDP as a critical factor in synaptic organization and resultant dendritic computation.