A major role for hearing in many animals is communication. There is evidence that many animal brains have nerve cells or nerve circuits that are in some way specifically "tuned" to recognize particular timing, duration, or pattern of sounds such as mating calls. Crickets have provided very useful models for investigation because they have single, identifiable nerve cells that are accessible for physiological recording. This project investigates the roles that individual nerve cells play in controlling the female cricket's recognition of and response to acoustic signals from the male. The anatomy and encoding properties of single cells will be determined using synthetic calls with variable parameters. Methods are developed to simultaneously record from single cells while the animal is actively behaving, turning toward the recognized sound source. Powerful new techniques for inactivation of single cells then will be used with a behavioral assay to determine the role of those single cells in the call recognition and response. The influences of hormones on these cells and on the behaviors also will be tested. Results will establish the cellular circuitry underlying this response behavior, and will be exciting to auditory scientists, and also should be interesting to those working on signal coding, neural circuits, or communication behavior. Results may also be relevant to aspects of insect biology and control.
