Representation of non-auditory events in monkey auditory cortex
Multiple Paper Presentation

Michael Brosch
Institute of Neurobiology, Magdeburg

     Abstract ID Number: 206
     Last modified: April 7, 2006
     Presentation date: 06/18/2006 2:00 PM in Hamilton Building, McNeil Theatre
     (View Schedule)

Abstract
Early auditory cortex is generally considered to be unimodal. Here we describe extensive cross-modal activation in the auditory cortex of two monkeys while they performed an auditory categorization task: monkeys were required to grasp a touch bar and hold it after a cue-light was turned on. This triggered a sequence of tones of variable frequencies. Monkeys had to indicate the occurrence of a falling frequency step in the sequence by releasing the touch bar. In primary auditory cortex and posterior belt areas we found neurons whose firing was transiently synchronized to the cue-light or to the touch or release of the bar. Such firing not seen or was modified when the monkeys did not initiate a trial after the cue-light was lit or when they performed a visual task. We speculate that the responses to non-auditory events were formed by the tight association between the auditory task and visual stimuli, hand movements, and tactile feedback about the proper placement of the hand on a touch bar during the long training period (> 100,000 trials) of the monkeys. The representation of non-auditory sensory modalities and movements in auditory cortex could accelerate and improve performance of subjects in highly demanding auditory tasks.

To be Presented at the Following Symposium:
multisensory processing in and near primary auditory cortex
Other papers in this Symposium:

• Peter Lakatos
  Cognitive Neuroscience & Schizophrenia Program, Nathan Kline Institute
  Monica N. O'Connell
  Cognitive Neuroscience & Schizophrenia Program, Nathan Kline Institute
  Aimee Mills
  Cognitive Neuroscience & Schizophrenia Program, Nathan Kline Institute
  George Karmos
  Inst. Psychology, Hungarian Acad. Sci., Budapest, Hungary
  Charles Schroeder
  Cognitive Neuroscience & Schizophrenia Program, Nathan Kline Institute
  Role of oscillations in multisensory enhancement of auditory processing
• Troy Hackett
  Dept. Psychology, Vanderbilt University
  John Smiley
  Cognitive Neuroscience & Schizophrenia Program, Nathan Kline Inst.
  George Karmos
  Inst. Psychology, Hungarian Acad. Sci., Budapest, Hungary
  Istvan Ulbert
  Inst. Psychology, Hungarian Acad. Sci., Budapest, Hungary
  Peter Lakatos
  Cognitive Neuroscience & Schizophrenia Program, Nathan Kline Inst.
  Charles Schroeder
  Cognitive Neuroscience & Schizophrenia Program, Nathan Kline Inst.
  Sources of somatic sensory input to auditory cortex in monkeys
• Asif Ghazanfar
  Princeton University
  Face/voice integration in monkey auditory cortex