How auditory neurons count temporal intervals and decode information.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
; 121(35): e2404157121, 2024 Aug 27.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39159380
ABSTRACT
The numerical sense of animals includes identifying the numerosity of a sequence of events that occur with specific intervals, e.g., notes in a call or bar of music. Across nervous systems, the temporal patterning of spikes can code these events, but how this information is decoded (counted) remains elusive. In the anuran auditory system, temporal information of this type is decoded in the midbrain, where "interval-counting" neurons spike only after at least a threshold number of sound pulses have occurred with specific timing. We show that this decoding process, i.e., interval counting, arises from integrating phasic, onset-type and offset inhibition with excitation that augments across successive intervals, possibly due to a progressive decrease in "shunting" effects of inhibition. Because these physiological properties are ubiquitous within and across central nervous systems, interval counting may be a general mechanism for decoding diverse information coded/encoded in temporal patterns of spikes, including "bursts," and estimating elapsed time.
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Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Neurônios
Limite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article