Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 6, 2026
09:06
Cochlear Implant Surgery and Electrically-evoked Auditory Brainstem Response Recordings in C57BL/6 Mice
Published on: January 9, 2019
14.6K
Bilateral auditory processing studied by selective cold-deactivation of cricket hearing organs
Xinyang Zhang1, Berthold Hedwig2
1Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK.
The Journal of Experimental Biology
|October 6, 2019
Summary
Crickets
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Auditory system research
Background:
- Bilateral processing is crucial for auditory perception.
- Auditory ON neurons play a key role in detecting sound.
- Understanding neural circuits in insects offers insights into sensory processing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate bilateral auditory processing in cricket ON neurons.
- To determine the role of contralateral auditory input in ON1 and ON2 neuron responses.
- To elucidate the mechanisms underlying sound localization and detection.
Main Methods:
- Utilized reversible cold-deactivation of cricket hearing organs using Peltier elements.
- Performed intracellular recordings of auditory ON neurons (ON1 and ON2).
- Applied acoustic stimuli while selectively deactivating ipsilateral or contralateral auditory organs.
Main Results:
- In ON1 neurons, contralateral inhibition enhanced the decline of phasic onset activity and reduced tonic spiking, increasing phasic activity salience.
- Contralateral input significantly impacted the tonic ON1 response, suggesting a role in enhancing bilateral auditory contrast.
- ON2 neurons received bilateral excitatory input, dominated by the ipsilateral side, with no observed inhibitory coupling.
Conclusions:
- Reciprocal inhibition in cricket auditory pathways may aid in sound pulse detection.
- Bilateral auditory contrast enhancement is a key function of contralateral inhibition in ON1 neurons.
- ON2 neurons exhibit predominantly ipsilateral excitatory input, differing from ON1's bilateral processing characteristics.
Related Concept Videos
01:31Hearing
56.3K
When we hear a sound, our nervous system is detecting sound waves—pressure waves of mechanical energy traveling through a medium. The frequency of the wave is perceived as pitch, while the amplitude is perceived as loudness.
56.3K
01:15Auditory Pathway
7.0K
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...
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking...
7.0K
01:17Auditory Perception
978
The auditory system is essential for sound perception, utilizing various critical structures. When sound waves enter the outer ear, they travel through the ear canal and cause the eardrum to vibrate. These vibrations are then transmitted to the middle ear, where three tiny bones – the malleus, incus, and stapes – amplify the sound. This amplification is crucial, as it ensures that the sound vibrations are strong enough to be conveyed to the inner ear. These vibrations then reach the...
978
01:13The Cochlea
50.3K
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.
50.3K