Distinct topographic organization and network activity patterns of corticocollicular neurons within layer 5 auditory cortex

Frontiers in Neural Circuits

Neural Circuits

Simon L. Wadle¹  Tatjana T. X. Schmitt¹  Kira M. A. Andrea¹  Jan J. Hirtz² 

[1] Physiology of Neuronal Networks, Department of Biology, RPTU University of Kaiserslautern-Landau, Kaiserslautern, Germany;null;

关键词: corticofugal;    mouse;    neocortex;    two-photon imaging;    primary auditory cortex;    anterior auditory field;    secondary auditory cortex;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fncir.2023.1210057

 received in 2023-04-21, accepted in 2023-06-22,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

The auditory cortex (AC) modulates the activity of upstream pathways in the auditory brainstem via descending (corticofugal) projections. This feedback system plays an important role in the plasticity of the auditory system by shaping response properties of neurons in many subcortical nuclei. The majority of layer (L) 5 corticofugal neurons project to the inferior colliculus (IC). This corticocollicular (CC) pathway is involved in processing of complex sounds, auditory-related learning, and defense behavior. Partly due to their location in deep cortical layers, CC neuron population activity patterns within neuronal AC ensembles remain poorly understood. We employed two-photon imaging to record the activity of hundreds of L5 neurons in anesthetized as well as awake animals. CC neurons are broader tuned than other L5 pyramidal neurons and display weaker topographic order in core AC subfields. Network activity analyses revealed stronger clusters of CC neurons compared to non-CC neurons, which respond more reliable and integrate information over larger distances. However, results obtained from secondary auditory cortex (A2) differed considerably. Here CC neurons displayed similar or higher topography, depending on the subset of neurons analyzed. Furthermore, specifically in A2, CC activity clusters formed in response to complex sounds were spatially more restricted compared to other L5 neurons. Our findings indicate distinct network mechanism of CC neurons in analyzing sound properties with pronounced subfield differences, demonstrating that the topography of sound-evoked responses within AC is neuron-type dependent.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 Schmitt, Andrea, Wadle and Hirtz.