Browse by author
Lookup NU author(s): David Perez Gonzalez
Full text for this publication is not currently held within this repository. Alternative links are provided below where available.
Frequency response areas (FRAs) were measured for 237 single units in the inferior colliculus (IC) of urethane-anesthetized pigmented rats using monaural pure-tone stimulation. Based on qualitative criteria [J Neurosci 21 (2001) 7303], FRAs were classified as V-shaped in 69% of neurons, non-V-shaped in 29%, and unclassifiable in the remaining 2%. Non-V-shaped FRAs were heterogeneous, comprising a number of subtypes including narrow, closed, low- and high-tilt, multipeaked, U-shaped, mosaic and inhibitory. To complement this subjective classification, we applied quantitative measures used by others (e.g. [J Neurophysiol 84 (2000) 1012]), including the inverse slope of the upper and lower FRA borders, Q-values, and other measures of bandwidth. The results suggest that FRAs in the rat IC are best described as forming a continuous distribution among subtypes, rather than clustering into discrete categories. Moreover, there is a broad range of frequency tuning characteristics and FRA types across the entire frequency spectrum. Within this general pattern, however, there are some frequency-specific differences in FRA type distribution. The relative proportion of V-shaped FRAs was greatest at the high and low ends of the auditory range, with the highest proportion of non-V-shaped FRAs in the mid-range from 6 to 12 kHz. For most neurons with multipeaked FRAs, the peak frequencies were not harmonically related. Frequency tuning in the pigmented rat IC is generally similar to that in other species. Comparison of Q values across auditory nuclei shows little evidence that FRAs are sharpened at levels above the auditory nerve. Rather, there is a broad range of frequency tuning properties at each level.
Author(s): Hernández O, Espinosa N, Pérez-González D, Malmierca MS
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Neuroscience
Year: 2005
Volume: 132
Issue: 1
Pages: 203-217
ISSN (print): 0306-4522
ISSN (electronic): 1873-7544
Publisher: Pergamon
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroscience.2005.01.001
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2005.01.001
Notes: Record Number: 1390 Language: eng Auditory Neurophysiology Unit, Laboratory for the Neurobiology of Hearing, Institute of Neuroscience of Castilla y Leon and Faculty of Medicine, University of Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain. 0306-4522
Altmetrics provided by Altmetric
