Representations in auditory cortex

How does auditory cortex represent auditory stimuli, and how do these representations contribute to behavior? Recent experimental evidence suggests that activity in auditory cortex consists of sparse and highly synchronized volleys of activity, observed both in anesthetized and awake animals. Many n...

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Published inCurrent opinion in neurobiology Vol. 19; no. 4; pp. 430 - 433
Main Authors Hromádka, Tomáš, Zador, Anthony M
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England Elsevier Ltd 01.08.2009
Subjects
Acoustic Stimulation
Action Potentials - physiology
Animals
Auditory Cortex - physiology
Auditory Pathways - physiology
Auditory Perception - physiology
Evoked Potentials, Auditory - physiology
Neurology
Neurons - physiology
Psychiatry
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Summary:How does auditory cortex represent auditory stimuli, and how do these representations contribute to behavior? Recent experimental evidence suggests that activity in auditory cortex consists of sparse and highly synchronized volleys of activity, observed both in anesthetized and awake animals. Many neurons are capable of remarkably precise activity with very low jitter or spike count variability. Most importantly, animals are capable of exploiting such precise neuronal activity in making sensory decisions. Whether the ability of auditory cortex to exploit fine temporal differences in cortical activity is unique to auditory modality, or represents a general strategy used by cortical circuits remains an open question.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-3
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ObjectType-Review-1
ISSN:0959-4388
1873-6882
DOI:10.1016/j.conb.2009.07.009