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The Cochlea

The Cochlea

The cochlea is a coiled structure in the inner ear that contains hair cells—the sensory receptors of the auditory system. Sound waves are transmitted to the cochlea by small bones attached to the eardrum called the ossicles, which vibrate the oval window that leads to the inner ear. This causes fluid in the chambers of the cochlea to move, vibrating the basilar membrane.

Auditory Pathway

Auditory Pathway

Auditory pathways constitute the complex neural circuits responsible for transmitting and interpreting auditory information from the peripheral auditory system to the brain. Sound waves are initially captured by the outer ear, funneled through the ear canal, and reach the tympanic membrane (eardrum). These vibrations are transmitted via the middle ear's ossicles to the inner ear's cochlea.
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking...

Hair Cells

Hair Cells

Hair cells are the sensory receptors of the auditory system—they transduce mechanical sound waves into electrical energy that the nervous system can understand. Hair cells are located in the organ of Corti within the cochlea of the inner ear, between the basilar and tectorial membranes. The actual sensory receptors are called inner hair cells. The outer hair cells serve other functions, such as sound amplification in the cochlea, and are not discussed in detail here.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 24, 2026

Stereotactically-guided Ablation of the Rat Auditory Cortex, and Localization of the Lesion in the Brain

Stereotactically-guided Ablation of the Rat Auditory Cortex, and Localization of the Lesion in the Brain

Published on: October 11, 2017

Synaptic mechanisms underlying interaural level difference selectivity in rat auditory cortex.

Michael Kyweriga¹, Whitney Stewart², Carolyn Cahill³

¹Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon; Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon;

Journal of Neurophysiology

|September 5, 2014

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Auditory cortex neurons process sound localization cues differently. Some inherit tuning, while others actively shape it using local inhibition, particularly for near-zero interaural level differences (ILDs).

Keywords:

auditory cortex interaural level difference sound localization synaptic inhibition voltage-clamp

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Published on: June 6, 2012

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Auditory processing
Computational neuroscience

Background:

Interaural level difference (ILD) is a crucial sound localization cue.
ILD processing occurs throughout the auditory system, including the auditory cortex.
The precise mechanisms of ILD tuning in the auditory cortex remain debated.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate whether auditory cortex neurons inherit ILD tuning or actively shape it via local inhibition.
To differentiate between passive inheritance and active shaping of ILD selectivity in neurons.
To understand the role of inhibition in auditory cortex neurons' responses to ILDs.

Main Methods:

Comparison of spiking responses with excitatory and inhibitory synaptic inputs across varying ILDs and sound levels.
Analysis of neuronal responses in rat auditory cortex.
Characterization of two distinct cell populations: EI cells and PB cells.

Main Results:

EI cells, preferring contralateral ILDs, demonstrated an inheritance strategy, matching spiking output to excitatory input.
PB cells, responsive to near-zero ILDs, exhibited active shaping via local inhibition.
PB cells received similar excitatory inputs as EI cells but showed strong inhibition suppressing spiking for non-preferred stimuli.

Conclusions:

Auditory cortex neurons employ distinct strategies for ILD processing.
EI cells appear to passively inherit ILD tuning from subcortical structures.
PB cells actively compute sensitivity for near-zero ILDs through local inhibitory circuits.