Sensitivity to interaural time difference and representation of azimuth in central nucleus of inferior colliculus in the barn owl

Effect of Stimulus-Dependent Spike Timing on Population Coding of Sound Location in the Owl's Auditory Midbrain

In the auditory system, the spectrotemporal structure of acoustic signals determines the temporal pattern of spikes. Here, we investigated this effect in neurons of the barn owl's auditory midbrain (Tyto furcata) that are selective for auditory space and whether it can influence the coding of sound direction. We found that in the nucleus where neurons first become selective to combinations of sound localization cues, reproducibility of spike trains across repeated trials of identical sounds, a metric of across-trial temporal fidelity of spiking patterns evoked by a stimulus, was maximal at the sound direction that elicited the highest firing rate. We then tested the hypothesis that this stimulus-dependent patterning resulted in rate co-modulation of cells with similar frequency and spatial selectivity, driving stimulus-dependent synchrony of population responses. Tetrodes were used to simultaneously record multiple nearby units in the optic tectum (OT), where auditory space is topographically represented. While spiking of neurons in OT showed lower reproducibility across trials compared with upstream nuclei, spike-time synchrony between nearby OT neurons was highest for sounds at their preferred direction. A model of the midbrain circuit explained the relationship between stimulus-dependent reproducibility and synchrony, and demonstrated that this effect can improve the decoding of sound location from the OT output. Thus, stimulus-dependent spiking patterns in the auditory midbrain can have an effect on spatial coding. This study reports a functional connection between spike patterning elicited by spectrotemporal features of a sound and the coding of its location.

Sound localization in barn owls studied with manipulated head-related transfer functions: beyond broadband interaural time and level differences

Interaural time and level differences are important cues for sound localization. We wondered whether the broadband information contained in these two cues could fully explain the behavior of barn owls and responses of midbrain neurons in these birds. To tackle this problem, we developed a novel approach based on head-related transfer functions. These filters contain the complete information present at the eardrum. We selected positions in space characterized by equal broadband interaural time and level differences. Stimulation from such positions provides reduced information to the owl. We show that barn owls are able to discriminate between such positions. In many cases, but not all, the owls may have used spectral components of interaural level differences that exceeded the known behavioral resolution and variability for discrimination. Alternatively, the birds may have used template matching. Likewise, neurons in the optic tectum of the barn owl, a nucleus involved in sensorimotor integration, contained more information than is available in the broadband interaural time and level differences. Thus, these data show that more information is available and used by barn owls for sound localization than carried by broadband interaural time and level differences.

Intrinsic and Synaptic Dynamics Contribute to Adaptation in the Core of the Avian Central Nucleus of the Inferior Colliculus

The reduction of neuronal responses to repeated stimulus presentation occurs in many sensory neurons, also in the inferior colliculus of birds. The cellular mechanisms that cause response adaptation are not well described. Adaptation must be explicable by changes in the activity of input neurons, short-term synaptic plasticity of the incoming connections, excitability changes of the neuron under consideration or influences of inhibitory or modulatory network connections. Using whole-cell recordings in acute brain slices of the embryonic chicken brain we wanted to understand the intrinsic and synaptic contributions to adaptation in the core of the central nucleus of the inferior colliculus (ICCc). We described two neuron types in the chicken ICCc based on their action potential firing patterns: Phasic/onset neurons showed strong intrinsic adaptation but recovered more rapidly. Tonic/sustained firing neurons had weaker adaptation but often had additional slow components of recovery from adaptation. Morphological analysis suggested two neuron classes, but no physiological parameter aligned with this classification. Chicken ICCc neurons received mostly mixed AMPA- and NMDA-type glutamatergic synaptic inputs. In the majority of ICCc neurons the input synapses underwent short-term depression. With a simulation of the putative population output activity of the chicken ICCc we showed that the different adaptation profiles of the neuron classes could shift the emphasize of stimulus encoding from transients at long intervals to ongoing parts at short intervals. Thus, we report here that description of biophysical and synaptic properties can help to explain adaptive phenomena in central auditory neurons.

Gas Anesthesia Impairs Peripheral Auditory Sensitivity in Barn Owls (Tyto alba)

Auditory nerve single-unit recordings were obtained from two groups of young barn owls (age, between posthatching days 11 and 86) in terminal experiments under two different anesthetic regimes: ketamine (6-11 mg/kg) plus xylazine (∼2 mg/kg); or isoflurane (1-1.5%) in oxygen, delivered via artificial respiration. In a second series of minimally invasive experiments, auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) were recorded in the same four adult barn owls (Tyto alba; age, between 5 and 32 months) under three different anesthetic protocols: ketamine (10 mg/kg) plus xylazine (3 mg/kg), isoflurane (1-1.5%), and sevoflurane (2-3%) in carbogen. Finally, the ABR measurements on adult owls were repeated in terminal experiments including more invasive procedures such as artificial respiration and higher isoflurane dosage. The main finding was a significant deterioration of auditory sensitivity in barn owls under gas anesthesia, at the level of the auditory nerve (i.e., a very peripheral level of the auditory system). The effect was drastic in the young animals that experienced threshold elevations in auditory nerve single-unit responses of ≥20 dB. ABR thresholds assessed repeatedly in experiments on adult owls were also significantly higher under isoflurane and sevoflurane, on average by 7 and 15 dB, compared with ketamine/xylazine. This difference already occurred with minimal dosages and was reversibly enlarged with increased isoflurane concentration. Finally, there was evidence for confounding detrimental effects associated with artificial respiration over many hours, which suggested oxygen toxicity.

Envelope contributions to the representation of interaural time difference in the forebrain of barn owls

Birds and mammals use the interaural time difference (ITD) for azimuthal sound localization. While barn owls can use the ITD of the stimulus carrier frequency over nearly their entire hearing range, mammals have to utilize the ITD of the stimulus envelope to extend the upper frequency limit of ITD-based sound localization. ITD is computed and processed in a dedicated neural circuit that consists of two pathways. In the barn owl, ITD representation is more complex in the forebrain than in the midbrain pathway because of the combination of two inputs that represent different ITDs. We speculated that one of the two inputs includes an envelope contribution. To estimate the envelope contribution, we recorded ITD response functions for correlated and anticorrelated noise stimuli in the barn owl's auditory arcopallium. Our findings indicate that barn owls, like mammals, represent both carrier and envelope ITDs of overlapping frequency ranges, supporting the hypothesis that carrier and envelope ITD-based localization are complementary beyond a mere extension of the upper frequency limit.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The results presented in this study show for the first time that the barn owl is able to extract and represent the interaural time difference (ITD) information conveyed by the envelope of a broadband acoustic signal. Like mammals, the barn owl extracts the ITD of the envelope and the carrier of a signal from the same frequency range. These results are of general interest, since they reinforce a trend found in neural signal processing across different species.

Estimating characteristic phase and delay from broadband interaural time difference tuning curves

Characteristic delay and characteristic phase are shape parameters of interaural time difference tuning curves. The standard procedure for the estimation of these parameters is based on the measurement of delay curves measured for tonal stimuli with varying frequencies. Common to all procedures is the detection of a linear behavior of the phase spectrum. Hence a reliable estimate can only be expected if sufficiently many relevant frequencies are tested. Thus, the estimation precision depends on the given bandwidth. Based on a linear model, we develop and implement methods for the estimation of characteristic phase and delay from a single broadband tuning curve. We present two different estimation algorithms, one based on a Fourier-analytic interpretation of characteristic delay and phase, and the other based on mean square error minimization. Estimation precision and robustness of the algorithms are tested on artificially generated data with predetermined characteristic delay and phase values, and on sample data from electrophysiological measurements in birds and in mammals. Increasing the signal-to-noise ratio or the bandwidth increases the estimation accuracy of the algorithms. Frequency band location and strong rectification also affect the estimation accuracy. For realistic bandwidths and signal-to-noise ratios, the minimization algorithm reliably and robustly estimates characteristic delay and phase and is superior to the Fourier-analytic method. Bandwidth-dependent significance thresholds allow to assess whether the estimated characteristic delay and phase values are meaningful shape parameters of a measured tuning curve. These thresholds also indicate the sampling rates needed to obtain reliable estimates from interaural time difference tuning curves.

The representation of sound localization cues in the barn owl's inferior colliculus

The barn owl is a well-known model system for studying auditory processing and sound localization. This article reviews the morphological and functional organization, as well as the role of the underlying microcircuits, of the barn owl's inferior colliculus (IC). We focus on the processing of frequency and interaural time (ITD) and level differences (ILD). We first summarize the morphology of the sub-nuclei belonging to the IC and their differentiation by antero- and retrograde labeling and by staining with various antibodies. We then focus on the response properties of neurons in the three major sub-nuclei of IC [core of the central nucleus of the IC (ICCc), lateral shell of the central nucleus of the IC (ICCls), and the external nucleus of the IC (ICX)]. ICCc projects to ICCls, which in turn sends its information to ICX. The responses of neurons in ICCc are sensitive to changes in ITD but not to changes in ILD. The distribution of ITD sensitivity with frequency in ICCc can only partly be explained by optimal coding. We continue with the tuning properties of ICCls neurons, the first station in the midbrain where the ITD and ILD pathways merge after they have split at the level of the cochlear nucleus. The ICCc and ICCls share similar ITD and frequency tuning. By contrast, ICCls shows sigmoidal ILD tuning which is absent in ICCc. Both ICCc and ICCls project to the forebrain, and ICCls also projects to ICX, where space-specific neurons are found. Space-specific neurons exhibit side peak suppression in ITD tuning, bell-shaped ILD tuning, and are broadly tuned to frequency. These neurons respond only to restricted positions of auditory space and form a map of two-dimensional auditory space. Finally, we briefly review major IC features, including multiplication-like computations, correlates of echo suppression, plasticity, and adaptation.

Neuroethology of prey capture in the barn owl (Tyto alba L.)

Barn owls are a model system for studying prey capture. These animals can catch mice by hearing alone, but use vision whenever light conditions allow this. The silent flight, the frontally oriented eyes, and the facial ruffs are specializations that evolved to optimize prey capture. The auditory system is characterized by high absolute sensitivity, a use of interaural time difference for azimuthal sound-localization over almost the total hearing range up to at least 9 kHz, and the use of interaural level difference for elevational sound localization in the upper frequency range. Response latencies towards auditory targets were shortened by covert attention, while overt attention helped to orient towards salient visual objects. However, only 20% of the fixation movements could be explained by the saliency of the fixated objects, suggesting a top-down control of attention. In a visual-search experiment the birds turned earlier and more often towards and spent more time at salient objects. The visual system also exhibits high absolute sensitivity, while the spatial resolution is not particularly high. Last but not least, head movements may be classified as fixations, translations, and rotations combined with translations. These motion primitives may be combined to complex head-movement patterns. With the expected easy availability of genetic techniques for specialists in the near future and the possibility to apply the findings in biomimetic devices prey capture in barn owls will remain an exciting field in the future.

Auditory spatial tuning at the crossroads of the midbrain and forebrain

The barn owl's midbrain and forebrain contain neurons tuned to sound direction. The spatial receptive fields of these neurons result from sensitivity to combinations of interaural time (ITD) and level (ILD) differences over a broad frequency range. While a map of auditory space has been described in the midbrain, no similar topographic representation has been found in the forebrain. The first nuclei that belong exclusively to the forebrain and midbrain pathways are the thalamic nucleus ovoidalis (Ov) and the external nucleus of the inferior colliculus (ICx), respectively. The midbrain projects to the auditory thalamus before sharp spatial receptive fields emerge; although Ov and ICx receive projections from the same midbrain nuclei, they are not directly connected. We compared the spatial tuning in Ov and ICx. Thalamic neurons respond to a broader frequency range and their ITD and ILD tuning varied more across frequency. However, neurons in Ov showed spatial receptive fields as selective as neurons in ICx. Thalamic spatial receptive fields were tuned to frontal and contralateral space and correlated with their tuning to ITD and ILD. Our results indicate that spatial tuning emerges in both pathways by similar combination selectivity to ITD and ILD. However, the midbrain and the thalamus do not appear to repeat exactly the same processing, as indicated by the difference in frequency range and the broader tuning to binaural cues. The differences observed at the initial stages of these sound-localization pathways may reflect diverse functions and coding schemes of midbrain and forebrain.

Distribution of interaural time difference in the barn owl's inferior colliculus in the low- and high-frequency ranges

Interaural time differences are an important cue for azimuthal sound localization. It is still unclear whether the same neuronal mechanisms underlie the representation in the brain of interaural time difference in different vertebrates and whether these mechanisms are driven by common constraints, such as optimal coding. Current sound localization models may be discriminated by studying the spectral distribution of response peaks in tuning curves that measure the sensitivity to interaural time difference. The sound localization system of the barn owl has been studied intensively, but data that would allow discrimination between currently discussed models are missing from this animal. We have therefore obtained extracellular recordings from the time-sensitive subnuclei of the barn owl's inferior colliculus. Response peaks were broadly scattered over the physiological range of interaural time differences. A change in the representation of the interaural phase differences with frequency was not observed. In some neurons, response peaks fell outside the physiological range of interaural time differences. For a considerable number of neurons, the peak closest to zero interaural time difference was not the behaviorally relevant peak. The data are in best accordance with models suggesting that a place code underlies the representation of interaural time difference. The data from the high-frequency range, but not from the low-frequency range, are consistent with predictions of optimal coding. We speculate that the deviation of the representation of interaural time difference from optimal-coding models in the low-frequency range is attributable to the diminished importance of low frequencies for catching prey in this species.