INNATE PROPERTIES OF SENSORY NEURONS AND EFFECTS OF EXPERIENCE

感觉神经元的固有特性和经验的影响

• 批准号: 6449801
• 负责人: ALISON DOUPE
• 金额: $ 20.73万
• 依托单位: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2001
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2001-05-01 至 2002-04-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/6449801
• 关键词: Aves; animal communication behavior; auditory deprivation; auditory discrimination; auditory pathways; auditory stimulus; behavioral /social science research tag; cerebral cortex; computer data analysis; early experience; electrophysiology; ethology; experimental brain lesion; juvenile animal; learning; neural information processing; neural plasticity; neuroanatomy; prosencephalon; sensorimotor system; species difference; vocalization

The long term goal of our laboratory is to understand how the brain changes with sensory learning, and what factors constrain learning-dependent changes. Vocal learning in birds provides a useful model to address these questions, because it is clear that songbirds must hear and memorize song early in life in order to sing normally as adults. Furthermore, birds have specialized brain structures devoted to song learning, in which many of the important neural changes are likely to occur. Young birds, like humans, show behavioral evidence of innate responsiveness to their own species' vocalizations. They must subsequently be exposed to adult song within a critical period if they are to memorize this song correctly. The general goal of the experiments proposed here is therefore 1) to investigate patterns of neural activity in the song system of birds prior to learning, to look for neural mechanisms which might mediate the innate behavioral responses to song, and then 2) to assess how this initial state of the nervous system is affected by subsequent sensory exposure or the lack thereof. We hypothesize that the innate capacity of songbirds to recognize songs of their own species (conspecific song) is encoded by auditory neural circuitry in and afferent to the song system. We propose to examine these areas systematically in juvenile birds, prior to song exposure, for the presence of neurons or ensembles of neurons that respond to stimuli known to elicit selective responses in behavioral studies. Such neurons might represent the innate template thought to underly conspecific song recognition. We will then examine the same areas after birds have had a period of sensory experience of song or of song deprivation. These experiments will provide insight into the effects of exposure to complex acoustic stimuli and how these stimuli might be represented in the spatiotemporal patterns of neural activity. We will compare our results in detail with our Program Project colleagues, especially Schreiner, who is analyzing mammalian auditory cortex before and after learning of complex sounds. Common principles underlying the effects of sensory experience may emerge from such thematically related studies of different systems. Because the innate responsiveness of songbirds is reminiscent of the innate human responsiveness to phonemes, which narrows with exposure to a specific language, these studies should also shed light on general mechanisms of vocal learning, the neural basis of constraints on vocal learning, and mechanisms of critical period closure.

我们实验室的长期目标是了解 大脑随感觉学习的变化，以及哪些因素限制 与学习有关的变化。 鸟类的声带学习提供了 解决这些问题的有用模型，因为很明显 鸣禽必须在生命的早期听到并记住歌曲才能 正常作为成年人唱歌。 此外，鸟类具有专门的大脑 致力于歌曲学习的结构，其中许多 重要的神经变化可能会发生。 幼鸟，喜欢 人类，表现出对他们的先天反应能力的行为证据 自己的物种的发声。 随后他们必须接触 如果他们要记住这首歌，成人歌在关键时期内 正确。 这里提出的实验的一般目标是 因此1）研究歌曲中神经活动的模式 学习之前的鸟类系统，寻找神经机制 这可能会调解对歌曲的先天行为反应，以及 然后2）评估神经系统的初始状态如何 受后续感官暴露或缺乏影响的影响。 我们 假设鸣禽的先天能力识别 他们自己的物种的歌曲（特定歌曲）由编码 听觉神经电路并传入歌曲系统。 我们 建议在少年鸟类中系统地检查这些区域， 在歌曲暴露之前，存在神经元或合奏的存在 响应已知引起选择性的刺激的神经元的 行为研究中的反应。 这样的神经元可能代表 天生的模板被认为是基本的同种歌曲识别。 然后，我们将在鸟类有一段时间后检查相同的区域 歌曲或歌曲剥夺的感官体验。 这些 实验将提供有关暴露影响的洞察力 复杂的声学刺激以及这些刺激如何 在神经活动的时空模式中表示。 我们 将将我们的结果与计划项目进行比较 同事，尤其是正在分析哺乳动物的Schreiner 听觉皮层在学习复杂的声音之前和之后。 感官体验影响的基础的共同原则 可能从不同的主题相关的研究中出现 系统。 因为鸣禽的天生反应能力是 让人想起天生对音素的反应， 这些研究会随着特定语言而狭窄 还应该阐明声乐学习的一般机制， 限制声音学习的神经基础和机制 关键时期关闭。