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A circuit for motor cortical modulation of auditory cortical activity.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Nelson, A; Schneider, DM; Takatoh, J; Sakurai, K; Wang, F; Mooney, R
Published in: J Neurosci
September 4, 2013

Normal hearing depends on the ability to distinguish self-generated sounds from other sounds, and this ability is thought to involve neural circuits that convey copies of motor command signals to various levels of the auditory system. Although such interactions at the cortical level are believed to facilitate auditory comprehension during movements and drive auditory hallucinations in pathological states, the synaptic organization and function of circuitry linking the motor and auditory cortices remain unclear. Here we describe experiments in the mouse that characterize circuitry well suited to transmit motor-related signals to the auditory cortex. Using retrograde viral tracing, we established that neurons in superficial and deep layers of the medial agranular motor cortex (M2) project directly to the auditory cortex and that the axons of some of these deep-layer cells also target brainstem motor regions. Using in vitro whole-cell physiology, optogenetics, and pharmacology, we determined that M2 axons make excitatory synapses in the auditory cortex but exert a primarily suppressive effect on auditory cortical neuron activity mediated in part by feedforward inhibition involving parvalbumin-positive interneurons. Using in vivo intracellular physiology, optogenetics, and sound playback, we also found that directly activating M2 axon terminals in the auditory cortex suppresses spontaneous and stimulus-evoked synaptic activity in auditory cortical neurons and that this effect depends on the relative timing of motor cortical activity and auditory stimulation. These experiments delineate the structural and functional properties of a corticocortical circuit that could enable movement-related suppression of auditory cortical activity.

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Published In

J Neurosci

DOI

EISSN

1529-2401

Publication Date

September 4, 2013

Volume

33

Issue

36

Start / End Page

14342 / 14353

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Synaptic Potentials
  • Synapses
  • Pyramidal Cells
  • Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • Nerve Net
  • Motor Neurons
  • Motor Cortex
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice
  • Interneurons
 

Citation

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Nelson, A., Schneider, D. M., Takatoh, J., Sakurai, K., Wang, F., & Mooney, R. (2013). A circuit for motor cortical modulation of auditory cortical activity. J Neurosci, 33(36), 14342–14353. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2275-13.2013
Nelson, Anders, David M. Schneider, Jun Takatoh, Katsuyasu Sakurai, Fan Wang, and Richard Mooney. “A circuit for motor cortical modulation of auditory cortical activity.J Neurosci 33, no. 36 (September 4, 2013): 14342–53. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2275-13.2013.
Nelson A, Schneider DM, Takatoh J, Sakurai K, Wang F, Mooney R. A circuit for motor cortical modulation of auditory cortical activity. J Neurosci. 2013 Sep 4;33(36):14342–53.
Nelson, Anders, et al. “A circuit for motor cortical modulation of auditory cortical activity.J Neurosci, vol. 33, no. 36, Sept. 2013, pp. 14342–53. Pubmed, doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2275-13.2013.
Nelson A, Schneider DM, Takatoh J, Sakurai K, Wang F, Mooney R. A circuit for motor cortical modulation of auditory cortical activity. J Neurosci. 2013 Sep 4;33(36):14342–14353.

Published In

J Neurosci

DOI

EISSN

1529-2401

Publication Date

September 4, 2013

Volume

33

Issue

36

Start / End Page

14342 / 14353

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • Synaptic Potentials
  • Synapses
  • Pyramidal Cells
  • Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • Nerve Net
  • Motor Neurons
  • Motor Cortex
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice
  • Interneurons