Communication is of major importance to our survival and yet we do not understand how the brain encodes this information. Moreover, much of human communication and language is predicated on learning simple auditory associations. Investigating non-human primate communication and learning can provide a template for the neural precursors of language. A guiding theme of this proposal is that a testable neural model of communication, including auditory learning, memory, and object identification, will emerge most readily from focused, detailed investigations of individual neurons and their perceptual and behavioral correlates. It was found recently that the cortex of the monkey's left temporal pole in the superior temporal gyrus is specialized for processing species-specific monkey vocalizations and this lateralization of communication sounds is similar to humans. The mechanism for hemispheric specialization in this case is suppression of the right hemisphere via the corpus callosum. Building on this finding, the selectivity of auditory neurons within the temporal pole to various sound stimuli, including monkey vocalizations, will be determined. Next, we will elucidate whether auditory responsive neurons within the temporal pole respond differentially to spatial auditory information and map their location. We will also determine if the temporal pole neurons are encoding conceptual learning and delay memory. These experiments are essential to describe the role of the temporal pole in communication. Specific hypothesis concerning the neural encoding of auditory information will be tested in awake monkeys using single unit electrodes implanted in the temporal pole. All together, the experiments proposed here address basic issues in auditory processing that have not been systematically explored. It is expected that a more thorough understanding of the monkey auditory system will provide useful insights into the neural substrates and mechanisms of human communication and into the causes and treatment of learning disabilities and communicative disorders.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01DC007156-04
Application #
7826745
Study Section
Cognitive Neuroscience Study Section (COG)
Program Officer
Platt, Christopher
Project Start
2007-06-08
Project End
2012-05-31
Budget Start
2010-06-01
Budget End
2011-05-31
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2010
Total Cost
$366,425
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Iowa
Department
Psychology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
062761671
City
Iowa City
State
IA
Country
United States
Zip Code
52242
Bigelow, James; Poremba, Amy (2015) Item-nonspecific proactive interference in monkeys' auditory short-term memory. Hear Res 327:69-77
Bigelow, James; Poremba, Amy (2014) Achilles' ear? Inferior human short-term and recognition memory in the auditory modality. PLoS One 9:e89914
Bigelow, James; Poremba, Amy (2013) Auditory memory in monkeys: costs and benefits of proactive interference. Am J Primatol 75:425-34
Plakke, B; Ng, C-W; Poremba, A (2013) Neural correlates of auditory recognition memory in primate lateral prefrontal cortex. Neuroscience 244:62-76
Poremba, Amy; Bigelow, James; Rossi, Breein (2013) Processing of communication sounds: contributions of learning, memory, and experience. Hear Res 305:31-44
Bigelow, James; Poremba, Amy (2013) Auditory proactive interference in monkeys: the roles of stimulus set size and intertrial interval. Learn Behav 41:319-32
Acerbo, Martin J; Lazareva, Olga F; McInnerney, John et al. (2012) Figure-ground discrimination in the avian brain: the nucleus rotundus and its inhibitory complex. Vision Res 70:18-26
Ng, Chi-Wing; Plakke, Bethany; Poremba, Amy (2009) Primate auditory recognition memory performance varies with sound type. Hear Res 256:64-74
Ding, Song-Lin; Van Hoesen, Gary W; Cassell, Martin D et al. (2009) Parcellation of human temporal polar cortex: a combined analysis of multiple cytoarchitectonic, chemoarchitectonic, and pathological markers. J Comp Neurol 514:595-623
Plakke, Bethany; Freeman, John H; Poremba, Amy (2009) Metabolic mapping of rat forebrain and midbrain during delay and trace eyeblink conditioning. Neurobiol Learn Mem 92:335-44

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