A neural ensemble correlation code for sound category identification.

ABSTRACT: Humans and other animals effortlessly identify natural sounds and categorize them into behaviorally relevant categories. Yet, the acoustic features and neural transformations that enable sound recognition and the formation of perceptual categories are largely unknown. Here, using multichannel neural recordings in the auditory midbrain of unanesthetized female rabbits, we first demonstrate that neural ensemble activity in the auditory midbrain displays highly structured correlations that vary with distinct natural sound stimuli. These stimulus-driven correlations can be used to accurately identify individual sounds using single-response trials, even when the sounds do not differ in their spectral content. Combining neural recordings and an auditory model, we then show how correlations betwe

SUBMITTER: Sadeghi M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6788721 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature