1
|
Méndez JM, Cooper BG, Goller F. Note similarities affect syntactic stability in zebra finches. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2024:10.1007/s00359-024-01713-6. [PMID: 39133335 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-024-01713-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2024] [Revised: 07/30/2024] [Accepted: 08/05/2024] [Indexed: 08/13/2024]
Abstract
The acquisition of an acoustic template is a fundamental component of vocal imitation learning, which is used to refine innate vocalizations and develop a species-specific song. In the absence of a model, birds fail to develop species typical songs. In zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), tutored birds produce songs with a stereotyped sequence of distinct acoustic elements, or notes, which form the song motif. Songs of untutored individuals feature atypical acoustic and temporal structure. Here we studied songs and associated respiratory patterns of tutored and untutored male zebra finches to investigate whether similar acoustic notes influence the sequence of song elements. A subgroup of animals developed songs with multiple acoustically similar notes that are produced with alike respiratory motor gestures. These birds also showed increased syntactic variability in their adult motif. Sequence variability tended to occur near song elements which showed high similarity in acoustic structure and underlying respiratory motor gestures. The duration and depth of the inspirations preceding the syllables where syntactic variation occurred did not allow prediction of the following sequence of notes, suggesting that the varying duration and air requirement of the following expiratory pulse is not predictively encoded in the motor program. This study provides a novel method for calculation of motor/acoustic similarity, and the results of this study suggest that the note is a fundamental acoustic unit in the organization of the motif and could play a role in the neural code for song syntax.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jorge M Méndez
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Minnesota State University-Mankato, Mankato, MN, USA.
| | - Brenton G Cooper
- Department of Psychology, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, TX, USA
| | - Franz Goller
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
- Institute of Zoophysiology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Burke JE, Perkes AD, Perlegos AE, Schmidt MF. A neural circuit for vocal production responds to viscerosensory input in the songbird. J Neurophysiol 2024; 131:304-310. [PMID: 38116612 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00400.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 12/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Motor performance is monitored continuously by specialized brain circuits and used adaptively to modify behavior on a moment-to-moment basis and over longer time periods. During vocal behaviors, such as singing in songbirds, internal evaluation of motor performance relies on sensory input from the auditory and vocal-respiratory systems. Sensory input from the auditory system to the motor system, often referred to as auditory feedback, has been well studied in singing zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), but little is known about how and where nonauditory sensory feedback is evaluated. Here we show that brief perturbations in air sac pressure cause short-latency neural responses in the higher-order song control nucleus HVC (used as proper name), an area necessary for song learning and song production. Air sacs were briefly pressurized through a cannula in anesthetized or sedated adult male zebra finches, and neural responses were recorded in both nucleus parambigualis (PAm), a brainstem inspiratory center, and HVC, a cortical premotor nucleus. These findings show that song control nuclei in the avian song system are sensitive to perturbations directly targeted to vocal-respiratory, or viscerosensory, afferents and support a role for multimodal sensory feedback integration in modifying and controlling vocal control circuits.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This study presents the first evidence of sensory input from the vocal-respiratory periphery directly activating neurons in a motor circuit for vocal production in songbirds. It was previously thought that this circuit relies exclusively on sensory input from the auditory system, but we provide groundbreaking evidence for nonauditory sensory input reaching the higher-order premotor nucleus HVC, expanding our understanding of what sensory feedback may be available for vocal control.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica E Burke
- Biology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
| | - Ammon D Perkes
- Biology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
| | - Alexandra E Perlegos
- Biology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
- Neuroscience Graduate Group, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
| | - Marc F Schmidt
- Biology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
- Neuroscience Graduate Group, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Tian LY, Warren TL, Mehaffey WH, Brainard MS. Dynamic top-down biasing implements rapid adaptive changes to individual movements. eLife 2023; 12:e83223. [PMID: 37733005 PMCID: PMC10513479 DOI: 10.7554/elife.83223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2022] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Complex behaviors depend on the coordinated activity of neural ensembles in interconnected brain areas. The behavioral function of such coordination, often measured as co-fluctuations in neural activity across areas, is poorly understood. One hypothesis is that rapidly varying co-fluctuations may be a signature of moment-by-moment task-relevant influences of one area on another. We tested this possibility for error-corrective adaptation of birdsong, a form of motor learning which has been hypothesized to depend on the top-down influence of a higher-order area, LMAN (lateral magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium), in shaping moment-by-moment output from a primary motor area, RA (robust nucleus of the arcopallium). In paired recordings of LMAN and RA in singing birds, we discovered a neural signature of a top-down influence of LMAN on RA, quantified as an LMAN-leading co-fluctuation in activity between these areas. During learning, this co-fluctuation strengthened in a premotor temporal window linked to the specific movement, sequential context, and acoustic modification associated with learning. Moreover, transient perturbation of LMAN activity specifically within this premotor window caused rapid occlusion of pitch modifications, consistent with LMAN conveying a temporally localized motor-biasing signal. Combined, our results reveal a dynamic top-down influence of LMAN on RA that varies on the rapid timescale of individual movements and is flexibly linked to contexts associated with learning. This finding indicates that inter-area co-fluctuations can be a signature of dynamic top-down influences that support complex behavior and its adaptation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lucas Y Tian
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - Timothy L Warren
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - William H Mehaffey
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - Michael S Brainard
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Moll FW, Kranz D, Corredera Asensio A, Elmaleh M, Ackert-Smith LA, Long MA. Thalamus drives vocal onsets in the zebra finch courtship song. Nature 2023; 616:132-136. [PMID: 36949189 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-05818-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
While motor cortical circuits contain information related to specific movement parameters1, long-range inputs also have a critical role in action execution2,3. Thalamic projections can shape premotor activity2-6 and have been suggested7 to mediate the selection of short, stereotyped actions comprising more complex behaviours8. However, the mechanisms by which thalamus interacts with motor cortical circuits to execute such movement sequences remain unknown. Here we find that thalamic drive engages a specific subpopulation of premotor neurons within the zebra finch song nucleus HVC (proper name) and that these inputs are critical for the progression between vocal motor elements (that is, 'syllables'). In vivo two-photon imaging of thalamic axons in HVC showed robust song-related activity, and online perturbations of thalamic function caused song to be truncated at syllable boundaries. We used thalamic stimulation to identify a sparse set of thalamically driven neurons within HVC, representing ~15% of the premotor neurons within that network. Unexpectedly, this population of putative thalamorecipient neurons is robustly active immediately preceding syllable onset, leading to the possibility that thalamic input can initiate individual song components through selectively targeting these 'starter cells'. Our findings highlight the motor thalamus as a director of cortical dynamics in the context of an ethologically relevant behavioural sequence.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Felix W Moll
- NYU Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA
- Animal Physiology, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Devorah Kranz
- NYU Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ariadna Corredera Asensio
- NYU Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Margot Elmaleh
- NYU Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Lyn A Ackert-Smith
- NYU Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Michael A Long
- NYU Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Fetterman GC, Margoliash D. Rhythmically bursting songbird vocomotor neurons are organized into multiple sequences, suggesting a network/intrinsic properties model encoding song and error, not time. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.01.23.525213. [PMID: 36747673 PMCID: PMC9900798 DOI: 10.1101/2023.01.23.525213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
In zebra finch, basal ganglia projecting "HVC X " neurons emit one or more spike bursts during each song motif (canonical sequence of syllables), which are thought to be driven in part by a process of spike rebound excitation. Zebra finch songs are highly stereotyped and recent results indicate that the intrinsic properties of HVC X neurons are similar within each bird, vary among birds depending on similarity of the songs, and vary with song errors. We tested the hypothesis that the timing of spike bursts during singing also evince individual-specific distributions. Examining previously published data, we demonstrated that the intervals between bursts of multibursting HVC X are similar for neurons within each bird, in many cases highly clustered at distinct peaks, with the patterns varying among birds. The fixed delay between bursts and different times when neurons are first recruited in the song yields precisely timed multiple sequences of bursts throughout the song, not the previously envisioned single sequence of bursts treated as events having statistically independent timing. A given moment in time engages multiple sequences and both single bursting and multibursting HVC X simultaneously. This suggests a model where a population of HVC X sharing common intrinsic properties driving spike rebound excitation influence the timing of a given HVC X burst through lateral inhibitory interactions. Perturbations in burst timing, representing error, could propagate in time. Our results extend the concept of central pattern generators to complex vertebrate vocal learning and suggest that network activity (timing of inhibition) and HVC X intrinsic properties become coordinated during developmental birdsong learning.
Collapse
|
6
|
Méndez JM, Dukes J, Cooper BG. Preparing to sing: respiratory patterns underlying motor readiness for song. J Neurophysiol 2022; 128:1646-1662. [PMID: 36416416 PMCID: PMC9762977 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00551.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2021] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Evidence for motor preparation and planning comes from neural activity preceding neural commands to activate the effectors; such preparatory activity is observed in pallial areas controlling learned motor behaviors. Vocal learning in songbirds is an example of a learned, sequential motor behavior that is a respiratory motor act and where there is evidence for neuromuscular planning. Respiration is the foundation of vocalization, elucidating the neural control of song motor planning requires studying respiratory antecedents of song initiation. Despite the importance of respiration in song production, few studies have investigated respiratory antecedents of impending vocalizations. Therefore, we investigated respiratory patterns in male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) and Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata domestica) prior to, during, and following song bouts. In both species, compared with quiet respiration, song respiratory patterns were generated with higher amplitude, faster tempo, and ∼70% of the respiratory cycle is in the expiratory phase. In female-directed and isolation song, both species show a change in the respiratory tempo and the proportion of time spent inhaling prior to song. Following song, only zebra finches show systematic changes in respiratory patterns; they spend a greater proportion of the respiratory cycle in the expiratory phase for 1 s after song, which is likely due to hyperventilation during song. Accelerated respiratory rhythms before song may reflect the motor preparation for the upcoming song production; species differences in preparatory motor activity could be related to the degree to which motor planning is required; finally, song termination may be dictated by respiratory demands.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Motor planning for vocal production in birdsong manifests as an adaptation of respiratory characteristics prior to song. The songbird's respiratory system anticipates the upcoming song production by accelerating the respiratory tempo and increasing the proportion of time spent inhaling.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jorge M Méndez
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Minnesota State University, Mankato, Minnesota
| | - Jacqueline Dukes
- Department of Psychology, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas
| | - Brenton G Cooper
- Department of Psychology, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Umemoto S, Yanagihara S, Okanoya K. Durations of preparatory motor activity in the avian basal ganglia for songs and calls in a species of songbirds. Neurosci Res 2022; 181:66-73. [PMID: 35341898 DOI: 10.1016/j.neures.2022.03.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2021] [Revised: 03/20/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Male songbirds are highly motivated to sing undirected song (US) as juveniles during song learning, and as adults. Given that singing US is a self-driven, elaborated behavior, we would expect to see preparatory activity in the striatal area prior to vocalization, and this preparatory activity could have different characteristics compared to activity driven by calls. In general, songs are longer, complex and influenced by learning while calls are shorter, simpler, and less influenced by experience. The present study recorded neural activity in Area X, a nucleus of the basal ganglia, in male Java sparrows (Lonchura oryzivora) in a sound-proof box and analyzed differences in activity change before US and trill-calls. Trill-calls were often emitted in social arousal, but occasionally emitted when alone. We saw a gradual increase in firing rate for about 2.3seconds prior to the onset of US, and a shorter increase of about 1.3seconds in firing rate prior to the onset of trill-calls. The results reveal that initiating US may be influenced by a prolonged and specific activity increase in the extent that is not seen with trill-calls. Results suggest that direct or indirect projections to Area X, which may reflect motivational state, could be the cause of this activity change.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sachio Umemoto
- Department of Life Sciences, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 3-8-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 153-8902, Japan.
| | - Shin Yanagihara
- Advanced Comprehensive Research Organization, Teikyo University, 2-21-1 Kaga, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-0003, Japan.
| | - Kazuo Okanoya
- Department of Life Sciences, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 3-8-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 153-8902, Japan; Advanced Comprehensive Research Organization, Teikyo University, 2-21-1 Kaga, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo 173-0003, Japan; RIKEN Center for Brain Science, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Abstract
Birds are our best models to understand vocal learning – a vocal production ability guided by auditory feedback, which includes human language. Among all vocal learners, songbirds have the most diverse life histories, and some aspects of their vocal learning ability are well-known, such as the neural substrates and vocal control centers, through vocal development studies. Currently, species are classified as either vocal learners or non-learners, and a key difference between the two is the development period, extended in learners, but short in non-learners. But this clear dichotomy has been challenged by the vocal learning continuum hypothesis. One way to address this challenge is to examine both learners and canonical non-learners and determine whether their vocal development is dichotomous or falls along a continuum. However, when we examined the existing empirical data we found that surprisingly few species have their vocal development periods documented. Furthermore, we identified multiple biases within previous vocal development studies in birds, including an extremely narrow focus on (1) a few model species, (2) oscines, (3) males, and (4) songs. Consequently, these biases may have led to an incomplete and possibly erroneous conclusions regarding the nature of the relationships between vocal development patterns and vocal learning ability. Diversifying vocal development studies to include a broader range of taxa is urgently needed to advance the field of vocal learning and examine how vocal development patterns might inform our understanding of vocal learning.
Collapse
|
9
|
Patel AD. Vocal learning as a preadaptation for the evolution of human beat perception and synchronization. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20200326. [PMID: 34420384 PMCID: PMC8380969 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The human capacity to synchronize movements to an auditory beat is central to musical behaviour and to debates over the evolution of human musicality. Have humans evolved any neural specializations for music processing, or does music rely entirely on brain circuits that evolved for other reasons? The vocal learning and rhythmic synchronization hypothesis proposes that our ability to move in time with an auditory beat in a precise, predictive and tempo-flexible manner originated in the neural circuitry for complex vocal learning. In the 15 years, since the hypothesis was proposed a variety of studies have supported it. However, one study has provided a significant challenge to the hypothesis. Furthermore, it is increasingly clear that vocal learning is not a binary trait animals have or lack, but varies more continuously across species. In the light of these developments and of recent progress in the neurobiology of beat processing and of vocal learning, the current paper revises the vocal learning hypothesis. It argues that an advanced form of vocal learning acts as a preadaptation for sporadic beat perception and synchronization (BPS), providing intrinsic rewards for predicting the temporal structure of complex acoustic sequences. It further proposes that in humans, mechanisms of gene-culture coevolution transformed this preadaptation into a genuine neural adaptation for sustained BPS. The larger significance of this proposal is that it outlines a hypothesis of cognitive gene-culture coevolution which makes testable predictions for neuroscience, cross-species studies and genetics. This article is part of the theme issue 'Synchrony and rhythm interaction: from the brain to behavioural ecology'.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Aniruddh D. Patel
- Department of Psychology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
- Program in Brain, Mind, and Consciousness, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Veit L, Tian LY, Monroy Hernandez CJ, Brainard MS. Songbirds can learn flexible contextual control over syllable sequencing. eLife 2021; 10:61610. [PMID: 34060473 PMCID: PMC8169114 DOI: 10.7554/elife.61610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Accepted: 04/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The flexible control of sequential behavior is a fundamental aspect of speech, enabling endless reordering of a limited set of learned vocal elements (syllables or words). Songbirds are phylogenetically distant from humans but share both the capacity for vocal learning and neural circuitry for vocal control that includes direct pallial-brainstem projections. Based on these similarities, we hypothesized that songbirds might likewise be able to learn flexible, moment-by-moment control over vocalizations. Here, we demonstrate that Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata domestica), which sing variable syllable sequences, can learn to rapidly modify the probability of specific sequences (e.g. ‘ab-c’ versus ‘ab-d’) in response to arbitrary visual cues. Moreover, once learned, this modulation of sequencing occurs immediately following changes in contextual cues and persists without external reinforcement. Our findings reveal a capacity in songbirds for learned contextual control over syllable sequencing that parallels human cognitive control over syllable sequencing in speech. Human speech and birdsong share numerous parallels. Both humans and birds learn their vocalizations during critical phases early in life, and both learn by imitating adults. Moreover, both humans and songbirds possess specific circuits in the brain that connect the forebrain to midbrain vocal centers. Humans can flexibly control what they say and how by reordering a fixed set of syllables into endless combinations, an ability critical to human speech and language. Birdsongs also vary depending on their context, and melodies to seduce a mate will be different from aggressive songs to warn other males to stay away. However, so far it was unclear whether songbirds are also capable of modifying songs independent of social or other naturally relevant contexts. To test whether birds can control their songs in a purposeful way, Veit et al. trained adult male Bengalese finches to change the sequence of their songs in response to random colored lights that had no natural meaning to the birds. A specific computer program was used to detect different variations on a theme that the bird naturally produced (for example, “ab-c” versus “ab-d”), and rewarded birds for singing one sequence when the light was yellow, and the other when it was green. Gradually, the finches learned to modify their songs and were able to switch between the appropriate sequences as soon as the light cues changed. This ability persisted for days, even without any further training. This suggests that songbirds can learn to flexibly and purposefully modify the way in which they sequence the notes in their songs, in a manner that parallels how humans control syllable sequencing in speech. Moreover, birds can learn to do this ‘on command’ in response to an arbitrarily chosen signal, even if it is not something that would impact their song in nature. Songbirds are an important model to study brain circuits involved in vocal learning. They are one of the few animals that, like humans, learn their vocalizations by imitating conspecifics. The finding that they can also flexibly control vocalizations may help shed light on the interactions between cognitive processing and sophisticated vocal learning abilities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lena Veit
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
| | - Lucas Y Tian
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
| | - Christian J Monroy Hernandez
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
| | - Michael S Brainard
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Palmer SE, Wright BD, Doupe AJ, Kao MH. Variable but not random: temporal pattern coding in a songbird brain area necessary for song modification. J Neurophysiol 2020; 125:540-555. [PMID: 33296616 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00034.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Practice of a complex motor gesture involves motor exploration to attain a better match to target, but little is known about the neural code for such exploration. We examine spiking in a premotor area of the songbird brain critical for song modification and quantify correlations between spiking and time in the motor sequence. While isolated spikes code for time in song during performance of song to a female bird, extended strings of spiking and silence, particularly bursts, code for time in song during undirected (solo) singing, or "practice." Bursts code for particular times in song with more information than individual spikes, and this spike-spike synergy is significantly higher during undirected singing. The observed pattern information cannot be accounted for by a Poisson model with a matched time-varying rate, indicating that the precise timing of spikes in both bursts in undirected singing and isolated spikes in directed singing code for song with a temporal code. Temporal coding during practice supports the hypothesis that lateral magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium neurons actively guide song modification at local instances in time.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This paper shows that bursts of spikes in the songbird brain during practice carry information about the output motor pattern. The brain's code for song changes with social context, in performance versus practice. Synergistic combinations of spiking and silence code for time in the bird's song. This is one of the first uses of information theory to quantify neural information about a motor output. This activity may guide changes to the song.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S E Palmer
- Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, Department of Physics, Committee on Computational Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - B D Wright
- Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, Department of Physics, Committee on Computational Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - A J Doupe
- Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, Department of Physics, Committee on Computational Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - M H Kao
- Department of Biology & Program in Neuroscience, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Kumar S, Mohapatra AN, Pundir AS, Kumari M, Din U, Sharma S, Datta A, Arora V, Iyengar S. Blocking Opioid Receptors in a Songbird Cortical Region Modulates the Acoustic Features and Levels of Female-Directed Singing. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:554094. [PMID: 33071736 PMCID: PMC7533562 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.554094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2020] [Accepted: 08/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The organization of the anterior forebrain pathway (AFP) of songbirds important for context-dependent singing is similar to that of cortical basal ganglia loops (CBG) in mammals, which underlie motor behaviors including vocalization. Since different components of the AFP express high levels of μ-opioid receptors (μ-ORs) as do CBG loops, songbirds act as model systems to study the role of opioid modulation on vocalization and the motivation to sing. The AFP in songbirds includes the cortical/pallial region LMAN (lateral magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium) which projects to Area X, a nucleus of the avian basal ganglia. In the present study, microdialysis was used to infuse different doses of the opioid antagonist naloxone in LMAN of adult male zebra finches. Whereas all doses of naloxone led to significant decreases in the number of FD (female-directed) songs, only 100 and 200 ng/ml of naloxone affected their acoustic properties. The decrease in FD song was not accompanied by changes in levels of attention toward females or those of neurotransmitters (dopamine, glutamate, and GABA) in LMAN. An earlier study had shown that similar manipulations in Area X did not lead to alterations in the number of FD songs but had significantly greater effects on their acoustic properties. Taken together, our results suggest that there are reciprocal effects of OR modulation on cortical and basal ganglia components of the AFP in songbirds.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Uzma Din
- National Brain Research Centre, Manesar, India
| | | | - Atanu Datta
- National Brain Research Centre, Manesar, India
| | - Vasav Arora
- National Brain Research Centre, Manesar, India
| | | |
Collapse
|
13
|
Margoliash D. Rhythm: Similar Structure in Birdsong and Music Gives Neuroethological Insight. Curr Biol 2020; 30:R1056-R1058. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.07.087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
|
14
|
Sheldon ZP, Castelino CB, Glaze CM, Bibu SP, Yau E, Schmidt MF. Regulation of vocal precision by noradrenergic modulation of a motor nucleus. J Neurophysiol 2020; 124:458-470. [DOI: 10.1152/jn.00154.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Norepinephrine (NE) function is often implicated in regulating arousal levels. Recent theory suggests that the noradrenergic system also regulates the optimization of behavior with respect to reward maximization by controlling a switch between exploration and exploitation of the specific actions that yield greatest utility. We show in the songbird that NE can act directly on a cortical motor area and cause a switch between exploratory and exploitative behavior.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zachary P. Sheldon
- Biology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | | | | | - Steve P. Bibu
- Biology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Elvina Yau
- Biology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Marc F. Schmidt
- Biology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Neuroscience Graduate Group, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Cohen Y, Shen J, Semu D, Leman DP, Liberti WA, Perkins LN, Liberti DC, Kotton DN, Gardner TJ. Hidden neural states underlie canary song syntax. Nature 2020; 582:539-544. [PMID: 32555461 PMCID: PMC7380505 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2397-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2019] [Accepted: 03/26/2020] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Coordinated skills such as speech or dance involve sequences of actions that follow syntactic rules in which transitions between elements depend on the identity and order of past actions. Canary songs are comprised of repeated syllables, called phrases, and the ordering of these phrases follows long-range rules1, where the choice of what to sing depends on song structure many seconds prior. The neural substrates that support these long-range correlations are unknown. Using miniature head-mounted microscopes and cell-type-specific genetic tools, we observed neural activity in the premotor nucleus HVC2–4 as canaries explore various phrase sequences in their repertoire. We find neurons that encode past transitions, extending over 4 phrases and spanning up to 4 seconds and 40 syllables. These neurons preferentially encode past actions rather than future actions, can reflect more than a single song history, and occur mostly during the rare phrases that involve history-dependent transitions in song. These findings demonstrate that HVC dynamics includes “hidden states” not reflected in ongoing behavior – states that carry information about prior actions. These states provide a possible substrate to control syntax transitions governed by long-range rules.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yarden Cohen
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Jun Shen
- Boston University Center for Systems Neuroscience, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Dawit Semu
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Daniel P Leman
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - William A Liberti
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | | | - Derek C Liberti
- Center for Regenerative Medicine of Boston University and Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.,The Pulmonary Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Darrell N Kotton
- Center for Regenerative Medicine of Boston University and Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.,The Pulmonary Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Timothy J Gardner
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA. .,Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Herbert CT, Boari S, Mindlin GB, Amador A. Dynamical model for the neural activity of singing Serinus canaria. CHAOS (WOODBURY, N.Y.) 2020; 30:053134. [PMID: 32491906 DOI: 10.1063/1.5145093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Vocal production in songbirds is a key topic regarding the motor control of a complex, learned behavior. Birdsong is the result of the interaction between the activity of an intricate set of neural nuclei specifically dedicated to song production and learning (known as the "song system"), the respiratory system and the vocal organ. These systems interact and give rise to precise biomechanical motor gestures which result in song production. Telencephalic neural nuclei play a key role in the production of motor commands that drive the periphery, and while several attempts have been made to understand their coding strategy, difficulties arise when trying to understand neural activity in the frame of the song system as a whole. In this work, we report neural additive models embedded in an architecture compatible with the song system to provide a tool to reduce the dimensionality of the problem by considering the global activity of the units in each neural nucleus. This model is capable of generating outputs compatible with measurements of air sac pressure during song production in canaries (Serinus canaria). In this work, we show that the activity in a telencephalic nucleus required by the model to reproduce the observed respiratory gestures is compatible with electrophysiological recordings of single neuron activity in freely behaving animals.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cecilia T Herbert
- Department of Physics, FCEyN, University of Buenos Aires and IFIBA, CONICET, Intendente Güiraldes 2160 (C1428EGA), Pabellon 1, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Santiago Boari
- Department of Physics, FCEyN, University of Buenos Aires and IFIBA, CONICET, Intendente Güiraldes 2160 (C1428EGA), Pabellon 1, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gabriel B Mindlin
- Department of Physics, FCEyN, University of Buenos Aires and IFIBA, CONICET, Intendente Güiraldes 2160 (C1428EGA), Pabellon 1, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Ana Amador
- Department of Physics, FCEyN, University of Buenos Aires and IFIBA, CONICET, Intendente Güiraldes 2160 (C1428EGA), Pabellon 1, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Mooney R. The neurobiology of innate and learned vocalizations in rodents and songbirds. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2020; 64:24-31. [PMID: 32086177 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2020.01.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2019] [Revised: 11/26/2019] [Accepted: 01/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Vocalizations are an important medium for sexual and social signaling in mammals and birds. In most mammals other than humans, vocalizations are specified by innate mechanisms and develop normally in the absence of auditory experience. By contrast, juvenile songbirds memorize and copy the songs of adult tutors, a process with many parallels to human speech learning. Despite the centrality of vocal learning to human speech, vocal production in humans as well as in songbirds exploits ancestral circuitry for innate vocalizations, and effective vocal communication depends on the fluent blending of innate and learned elements. This review covers recent advances in our understanding of central mechanisms for learned and innate vocalizations in birds and mice, including brainstem mechanisms that help to 'gate' vocalizations on or off, cortical involvement in learned and innate vocalizations, and the delineation of circuits that evaluate and reinforce song performance to facilitate vocal learning.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Richard Mooney
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27705, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Isola GR, Vochin A, Sakata JT. Manipulations of inhibition in cortical circuitry differentially affect spectral and temporal features of Bengalese finch song. J Neurophysiol 2020; 123:815-830. [PMID: 31967928 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00142.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The interplay between inhibition and excitation can regulate behavioral expression and control, including the expression of communicative behaviors like birdsong. Computational models postulate varying degrees to which inhibition within vocal motor circuitry influences birdsong, but few studies have tested these models by manipulating inhibition. Here we enhanced and attenuated inhibition in the cortical nucleus HVC (used as proper name) of Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata var. domestica). Enhancement of inhibition (with muscimol) in HVC dose-dependently reduced the amount of song produced. Infusions of higher concentrations of muscimol caused some birds to produce spectrally degraded songs, whereas infusions of lower doses of muscimol led to the production of relatively normal (nondegraded) songs. However, the spectral and temporal structures of these nondegraded songs were significantly different from songs produced under control conditions. In particular, muscimol infusions decreased the frequency and amplitude of syllables, increased various measures of acoustic entropy, and increased the variability of syllable structure. Muscimol also increased sequence durations and the variability of syllable timing and syllable sequencing. Attenuation of inhibition (with bicuculline) in HVC led to changes to song distinct from and often opposite to enhancing inhibition. For example, in contrast to muscimol, bicuculline infusions increased syllable amplitude, frequency, and duration and decreased the variability of acoustic features. However, like muscimol, bicuculline increased the variability of syllable sequencing. These data highlight the importance of inhibition to the production of stereotyped vocalizations and demonstrate that changes to neural dynamics within cortical circuitry can differentially affect spectral and temporal features of song.NEW & NOTEWORTHY We reveal that manipulations of inhibition in the cortical nucleus HVC affect the structure, timing, and sequencing of syllables in Bengalese finch song. Enhancing and blocking inhibition led to opposite changes to the acoustic structure and timing of vocalizations, but both caused similar changes to vocal sequencing. These data provide support for computational models of song control but also motivate refinement of existing models to account for differential effects on syllable structure, timing, and sequencing.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gaurav R Isola
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Anca Vochin
- Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Jon T Sakata
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Centre for Research on Brain, Language, and Music, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Center for Studies in Behavioral Neurobiology, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Nieder A, Mooney R. The neurobiology of innate, volitional and learned vocalizations in mammals and birds. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2020; 375:20190054. [PMID: 31735150 PMCID: PMC6895551 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/15/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Vocalization is an ancient vertebrate trait essential to many forms of communication, ranging from courtship calls to free verse. Vocalizations may be entirely innate and evoked by sexual cues or emotional state, as with many types of calls made in primates, rodents and birds; volitional, as with innate calls that, following extensive training, can be evoked by arbitrary sensory cues in non-human primates and corvid songbirds; or learned, acoustically flexible and complex, as with human speech and the courtship songs of oscine songbirds. This review compares and contrasts the neural mechanisms underlying innate, volitional and learned vocalizations, with an emphasis on functional studies in primates, rodents and songbirds. This comparison reveals both highly conserved and convergent mechanisms of vocal production in these different groups, despite their often vast phylogenetic separation. This similarity of central mechanisms for different forms of vocal production presents experimentalists with useful avenues for gaining detailed mechanistic insight into how vocalizations are employed for social and sexual signalling, and how they can be modified through experience to yield new vocal repertoires customized to the individual's social group. This article is part of the theme issue 'What can animal communication teach us about human language?'
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Nieder
- Animal Physiology Unit, Institute of Neurobiology, University Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Richard Mooney
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Daliparthi VK, Tachibana RO, Cooper BG, Hahnloser RH, Kojima S, Sober SJ, Roberts TF. Transitioning between preparatory and precisely sequenced neuronal activity in production of a skilled behavior. eLife 2019; 8:43732. [PMID: 31184589 PMCID: PMC6592689 DOI: 10.7554/elife.43732] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2018] [Accepted: 06/10/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Precise neural sequences are associated with the production of well-learned skilled behaviors. Yet, how neural sequences arise in the brain remains unclear. In songbirds, premotor projection neurons in the cortical song nucleus HVC are necessary for producing learned song and exhibit precise sequential activity during singing. Using cell-type specific calcium imaging we identify populations of HVC premotor neurons associated with the beginning and ending of singing-related neural sequences. We characterize neurons that bookend singing-related sequences and neuronal populations that transition from sparse preparatory activity prior to song to precise neural sequences during singing. Recordings from downstream premotor neurons or the respiratory system suggest that pre-song activity may be involved in motor preparation to sing. These findings reveal population mechanisms associated with moving from non-vocal to vocal behavioral states and suggest that precise neural sequences begin and end as part of orchestrated activity across functionally diverse populations of cortical premotor neurons.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vamsi K Daliparthi
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, United States
| | - Ryosuke O Tachibana
- Department of Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.,Institute of Neuroinformatics, University of Zurich/ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Brenton G Cooper
- Department of Psychology, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, United States
| | - Richard Hr Hahnloser
- Institute of Neuroinformatics, University of Zurich/ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.,Neuroscience Center Zurich (ZNZ), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Satoshi Kojima
- Department of Structure and Function of Neural Network, Korea Brain Research Institute, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| | - Samuel J Sober
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, United States
| | - Todd F Roberts
- Department of Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, United States
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Zhang YS. Commentary on "Modeling temperature manipulation in a circular model of birdsong production". PAPERS IN PHYSICS 2018. [DOI: 10.4279/pip.100003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022] Open
Abstract
A Commentary on the paper by G. C. Dima et al. [Pap. Phys. 10, 100002 (2018)].Received: 8 January 2018, Accepted: 11 January 2018; Edited by: A. Martí; DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4279/PIP.100003Cite as: Y S Zhang, Papers in Physics 10, 100003 (2018)This paper, by Y S Zhang, is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0.
Collapse
|
22
|
Dima GC, Goldin MA, Mindlin GB. Modeling temperature manipulations in a circular model of birdsong production. PAPERS IN PHYSICS 2018. [DOI: 10.4279/pip.100002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022] Open
|
23
|
Mindlin GB. Nonlinear dynamics in the study of birdsong. CHAOS (WOODBURY, N.Y.) 2017; 27:092101. [PMID: 28964148 PMCID: PMC5605333 DOI: 10.1063/1.4986932] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2017] [Accepted: 08/17/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Birdsong, a rich and complex behavior, is a stellar model to understand a variety of biological problems, from motor control to learning. It also enables us to study how behavior emerges when a nervous system, a biomechanical device and the environment interact. In this review, I will show that many questions in the field can benefit from the approach of nonlinear dynamics, and how birdsong can inspire new directions for research in dynamics.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel B Mindlin
- Departamento de Física, FCEyN, Universidad de Buenos Aires IFIBA, CONICET, Argentina
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Goldin MA, Mindlin GB. Temperature manipulation of neuronal dynamics in a forebrain motor control nucleus. PLoS Comput Biol 2017; 13:e1005699. [PMID: 28829769 PMCID: PMC5568752 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1005699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2017] [Accepted: 07/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Different neuronal types within brain motor areas contribute to the generation of complex motor behaviors. A widely studied songbird forebrain nucleus (HVC) has been recognized as fundamental in shaping the precise timing characteristics of birdsong. This is based, among other evidence, on the stretching and the “breaking” of song structure when HVC is cooled. However, little is known about the temperature effects that take place in its neurons. To address this, we investigated the dynamics of HVC both experimentally and computationally. We developed a technique where simultaneous electrophysiological recordings were performed during temperature manipulation of HVC. We recorded spontaneous activity and found three effects: widening of the spike shape, decrease of the firing rate and change in the interspike interval distribution. All these effects could be explained with a detailed conductance based model of all the neurons present in HVC. Temperature dependence of the ionic channel time constants explained the first effect, while the second was based in the changes of the maximal conductance using single synaptic excitatory inputs. The last phenomenon, only emerged after introducing a more realistic synaptic input to the inhibitory interneurons. Two timescales were present in the interspike distributions. The behavior of one timescale was reproduced with different input balances received form the excitatory neurons, whereas the other, which disappears with cooling, could not be found assuming poissonian synaptic inputs. Furthermore, the computational model shows that the bursting of the excitatory neurons arises naturally at normal brain temperature and that they have an intrinsic delay at low temperatures. The same effect occurs at single synapses, which may explain song stretching. These findings shed light on the temperature dependence of neuronal dynamics and present a comprehensive framework to study neuronal connectivity. This study, which is based on intrinsic neuronal characteristics, may help to understand emergent behavioral changes. The study of the neuronal mechanisms that give rise to the complex behavior of singing in birds has been hotly debated lately. Many models have been tested and novel tools have been developed to try to understand the role of a key brain nucleus in the song pathway: HVC. It is believed that it is highly responsible for generating the precise timing of songs, and this has been tested by manipulating it with temperature. Results showed that cooling can stretch, but that it can also restructure or “break” the song syllables. However, single neuronal mechanisms are not yet described. To better understand this, we cooled HVC in canaries and measured spontaneous activity electrophysiologically. We found three effects: spike shape widening, spike rate reduction and changes in inter-spike-interval (ISI) distributions. To explain them, we built a computational model with a detailed description of ion channel conductances and temperature dependency. We could explain the first effect with a single neuron model. The second, could be explained adding single synapses. Finally, we showed similar ISI modifications of one of the timescales present by means of multiple stochastic inputs. In addition, we found that excitatory neurons show natural bursting behavior at normal brain temperatures and that synaptic delays are the main candidates to explain song stretching at low temperatures.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Matías A. Goldin
- Dynamical Systems Laboratory, Physics Department and IFIBA Conicet, University of Buenos Aires, Pabellón 1, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- * E-mail:
| | - Gabriel B. Mindlin
- Dynamical Systems Laboratory, Physics Department and IFIBA Conicet, University of Buenos Aires, Pabellón 1, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Picardo MA, Merel J, Katlowitz KA, Vallentin D, Okobi DE, Benezra SE, Clary RC, Pnevmatikakis EA, Paninski L, Long MA. Population-Level Representation of a Temporal Sequence Underlying Song Production in the Zebra Finch. Neuron 2017; 90:866-76. [PMID: 27196976 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2016.02.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2015] [Revised: 01/14/2016] [Accepted: 02/04/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The zebra finch brain features a set of clearly defined and hierarchically arranged motor nuclei that are selectively responsible for producing singing behavior. One of these regions, a critical forebrain structure called HVC, contains premotor neurons that are active at precise time points during song production. However, the neural representation of this behavior at a population level remains elusive. We used two-photon microscopy to monitor ensemble activity during singing, integrating across multiple trials by adopting a Bayesian inference approach to more precisely estimate burst timing. Additionally, we examined spiking and motor-related synaptic inputs using intracellular recordings during singing. With both experimental approaches, we find that premotor events do not occur preferentially at the onsets or offsets of song syllables or at specific subsyllabic motor landmarks. These results strongly support the notion that HVC projection neurons collectively exhibit a temporal sequence during singing that is uncoupled from ongoing movements.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michel A Picardo
- New York University Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Josh Merel
- Department of Statistics and Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Grossman Center for the Statistics of Mind, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Kalman A Katlowitz
- New York University Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Daniela Vallentin
- New York University Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Daniel E Okobi
- New York University Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Sam E Benezra
- New York University Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Rachel C Clary
- New York University Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Eftychios A Pnevmatikakis
- Department of Statistics and Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Grossman Center for the Statistics of Mind, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Simons Center for Data Analysis, Simons Foundation, New York, NY 10010, USA
| | - Liam Paninski
- Department of Statistics and Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Grossman Center for the Statistics of Mind, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Michael A Long
- New York University Neuroscience Institute and Department of Otolaryngology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY 10016, USA; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Lynch GF, Okubo TS, Hanuschkin A, Hahnloser RHR, Fee MS. Rhythmic Continuous-Time Coding in the Songbird Analog of Vocal Motor Cortex. Neuron 2017; 90:877-92. [PMID: 27196977 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2016.04.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2015] [Revised: 02/17/2016] [Accepted: 04/11/2016] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Songbirds learn and produce complex sequences of vocal gestures. Adult birdsong requires premotor nucleus HVC, in which projection neurons (PNs) burst sparsely at stereotyped times in the song. It has been hypothesized that PN bursts, as a population, form a continuous sequence, while a different model of HVC function proposes that both HVC PN and interneuron activity is tightly organized around motor gestures. Using a large dataset of PNs and interneurons recorded in singing birds, we test several predictions of these models. We find that PN bursts in adult birds are continuously and nearly uniformly distributed throughout song. However, we also find that PN and interneuron firing rates exhibit significant 10-Hz rhythmicity locked to song syllables, peaking prior to syllable onsets and suppressed prior to offsets-a pattern that predominates PN and interneuron activity in HVC during early stages of vocal learning.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Galen F Lynch
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Tatsuo S Okubo
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Alexander Hanuschkin
- Institute of Neuroinformatics, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich (ZNZ), Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - Richard H R Hahnloser
- Institute of Neuroinformatics, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich 8057, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich (ZNZ), Zurich 8057, Switzerland
| | - Michale S Fee
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Amador A, Boari S, Mindlin GB. From perception to action in songbird production: dynamics of a whole loop. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 3:30-35. [PMID: 28695216 DOI: 10.1016/j.coisb.2017.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Birdsong emerges when a set of highly interconnected brain areas manage to generate a complex output. This consists of precise respiratory rhythms as well as motor instructions to control the vocal organ configuration. In this way, during birdsong production, dedicated cortical areas interact with life-supporting ones in the brainstem, such as the respiratory nuclei. We discuss an integrative view of this interaction together with a widely accepted "top-down" representation of the song system. We also show that a description of this neural network in terms of dynamical systems allows to explore songbird production and processing by generating testable predictions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ana Amador
- Physics Department, FCEyN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, and IFIBA Conicet Int. Guiraldes 2160, Pab.1, Ciudad Universitaria, (1428) Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Santiago Boari
- Physics Department, FCEyN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, and IFIBA Conicet Int. Guiraldes 2160, Pab.1, Ciudad Universitaria, (1428) Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gabriel B Mindlin
- Physics Department, FCEyN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, and IFIBA Conicet Int. Guiraldes 2160, Pab.1, Ciudad Universitaria, (1428) Buenos Aires, Argentina
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Danish HH, Aronov D, Fee MS. Rhythmic syllable-related activity in a songbird motor thalamic nucleus necessary for learned vocalizations. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0169568. [PMID: 28617829 PMCID: PMC5472270 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0169568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2016] [Accepted: 12/19/2016] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Birdsong is a complex behavior that exhibits hierarchical organization. While the representation of singing behavior and its hierarchical organization has been studied in some detail in avian cortical premotor circuits, our understanding of the role of the thalamus in adult birdsong is incomplete. Using a combination of behavioral and electrophysiological studies, we seek to expand on earlier work showing that the thalamic nucleus Uvaeformis (Uva) is necessary for the production of stereotyped, adult song in zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata). We confirm that complete bilateral lesions of Uva abolish singing in the ‘directed’ social context, but find that in the ‘undirected’ social context, such lesions result in highly variable vocalizations similar to early babbling song in juvenile birds. Recordings of neural activity in Uva reveal strong syllable-related modulation, maximally active prior to syllable onsets and minimally active prior to syllable offsets. Furthermore, both song and Uva activity exhibit a pronounced coherent modulation at 10Hz—a pattern observed in downstream premotor areas in adult and, even more prominently, in juvenile birds. These findings are broadly consistent with the idea that Uva is critical in the sequential activation of behavioral modules in HVC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Husain H. Danish
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States of America
| | - Dmitriy Aronov
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States of America
| | - Michale S. Fee
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Galvis D, Wu W, Hyson RL, Johnson F, Bertram R. A distributed neural network model for the distinct roles of medial and lateral HVC in zebra finch song production. J Neurophysiol 2017; 118:677-692. [PMID: 28381490 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00917.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2016] [Revised: 03/30/2017] [Accepted: 03/30/2017] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Male zebra finches produce a song consisting of a canonical sequence of syllables, learned from a tutor and repeated throughout its adult life. Much of the neural circuitry responsible for this behavior is located in the cortical premotor region HVC (acronym is name). In a recent study from our laboratory, we found that partial bilateral ablation of the medial portion of HVC has effects on the song that are qualitatively different from those of bilateral ablation of the lateral portion. In this report we describe a neural network organization that can explain these data, and in so doing suggests key roles for other brain nuclei in the production of song. We also suggest that syllables and the gaps between them are each coded separately by neural chains within HVC, and that the timing mechanisms for syllables and gaps are distinct. The design principles underlying this model assign distinct roles for medial and lateral HVC circuitry that explain the data on medial and lateral ablations. In addition, despite the fact that the neural coding of song sequence is distributed among several brain nuclei in our model, it accounts for data showing that cooling of HVC stretches syllables uniformly and to a greater extent than gaps. Finally, the model made unanticipated predictions about details of the effects of medial and lateral HVC ablations that were then confirmed by reanalysis of these previously acquired behavioral data.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Zebra finch song consists of a string of syllables repeated in a nearly invariant sequence. We propose a neural network organization that can explain recent data indicating that the medial and lateral portions of the premotor cortical nucleus HVC have different roles in zebra finch song production. Our model explains these data, as well as data on the effects on song of cooling HVC, and makes predictions that we test in the singing bird.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Galvis
- Department of Mathematics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
| | - Wei Wu
- Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida.,Department of Statistics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida; and
| | - Richard L Hyson
- Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida.,Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
| | - Frank Johnson
- Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida.,Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
| | - Richard Bertram
- Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida; .,Department of Mathematics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Zhang YS, Wittenbach JD, Jin DZ, Kozhevnikov AA. Temperature Manipulation in Songbird Brain Implicates the Premotor Nucleus HVC in Birdsong Syntax. J Neurosci 2017; 37:2600-2611. [PMID: 28159910 PMCID: PMC6596640 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1827-16.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2016] [Revised: 01/03/2017] [Accepted: 01/17/2017] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Variable motor sequences of animals are often structured and can be described by probabilistic transition rules between action elements. Examples include the songs of many songbird species such as the Bengalese finch, which consist of stereotypical syllables sequenced according to probabilistic rules (song syntax). The neural mechanisms behind such rules are poorly understood. Here, we investigate where the song syntax is encoded in the brain of the Bengalese finch by rapidly and reversibly manipulating the temperature in the song production pathway. Cooling the premotor nucleus HVC (proper name) slows down the song tempo, consistent with the idea that HVC controls moment-to-moment timings of acoustic features in the syllables. More importantly, cooling HVC alters the transition probabilities between syllables. Cooling HVC reduces the number of repetitions of long-repeated syllables and increases the randomness of syllable sequences. In contrast, cooling the downstream motor area RA (robust nucleus of the acropallium), which is critical for singing, does not affect the song syntax. Unilateral cooling of HVC shows that control of syllables is mostly lateralized to the left HVC, whereas transition probabilities between the syllables can be affected by cooling HVC in either hemisphere to varying degrees. These results show that HVC is a key site for encoding song syntax in the Bengalese finch. HVC is thus involved both in encoding timings within syllables and in sequencing probabilistic transitions between syllables. Our finding suggests that probabilistic selections and fine-grained timings of action elements can be integrated within the same neural circuits.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Many animal behaviors such as birdsong consist of variable sequences of discrete actions. Where and how the probabilistic rules of such sequences are encoded in the brain is poorly understood. We locally and reversibly cooled brain areas in songbirds during singing. Mild cooling of area HVC in the Bengalese finch brain-a premotor area homologous to the mammalian premotor cortex-alters the statistics of the syllable sequences, suggesting that HVC is critical for birdsong sequences. HVC is also known for controlling moment-to-moment timings within syllables. Our results show that timing and probabilistic sequencing of actions can share the same neural circuits in local brain areas.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Dezhe Z Jin
- Department of Physics,
- Center for Neural Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802
| | | |
Collapse
|
31
|
Zengin-Toktas Y, Woolley SC. Singing modulates parvalbumin interneurons throughout songbird forebrain vocal control circuitry. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0172944. [PMID: 28235074 PMCID: PMC5325550 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0172944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2016] [Accepted: 02/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Across species, the performance of vocal signals can be modulated by the social environment. Zebra finches, for example, adjust their song performance when singing to females ('female-directed' or FD song) compared to when singing in isolation ('undirected' or UD song). These changes are salient, as females prefer the FD song over the UD song. Despite the importance of these performance changes, the neural mechanisms underlying this social modulation remain poorly understood. Previous work in finches has established that expression of the immediate early gene EGR1 is increased during singing and modulated by social context within the vocal control circuitry. Here, we examined whether particular neural subpopulations within those vocal control regions exhibit similar modulations of EGR1 expression. We compared EGR1 expression in neurons expressing parvalbumin (PV), a calcium buffer that modulates network plasticity and homeostasis, among males that performed FD song, males that produced UD song, or males that did not sing. We found that, overall, singing but not social context significantly affected EGR1 expression in PV neurons throughout the vocal control nuclei. We observed differences in EGR1 expression between two classes of PV interneurons in the basal ganglia nucleus Area X. Additionally, we found that singing altered the amount of PV expression in neurons in HVC and Area X and that distinct PV interneuron types in Area X exhibited different patterns of modulation by singing. These data indicate that throughout the vocal control circuitry the singing-related regulation of EGR1 expression in PV neurons may be less influenced by social context than in other neuron types and raise the possibility of cell-type specific differences in plasticity and calcium buffering.
Collapse
|
32
|
Abstract
A fundamental problem in neuroscience is understanding how sequences of action potentials ("spikes") encode information about sensory signals and motor outputs. Although traditional theories assume that this information is conveyed by the total number of spikes fired within a specified time interval (spike rate), recent studies have shown that additional information is carried by the millisecond-scale timing patterns of action potentials (spike timing). However, it is unknown whether or how subtle differences in spike timing drive differences in perception or behavior, leaving it unclear whether the information in spike timing actually plays a role in brain function. By examining the activity of individual motor units (the muscle fibers innervated by a single motor neuron) and manipulating patterns of activation of these neurons, we provide both correlative and causal evidence that the nervous system uses millisecond-scale variations in the timing of spikes within multispike patterns to control a vertebrate behavior-namely, respiration in the Bengalese finch, a songbird. These findings suggest that a fundamental assumption of current theories of motor coding requires revision.
Collapse
|
33
|
Alonso RG, Amador A, Mindlin GB. An integrated model for motor control of song in Serinus canaria. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2016; 110:127-139. [PMID: 27940209 DOI: 10.1016/j.jphysparis.2016.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2016] [Revised: 11/25/2016] [Accepted: 12/01/2016] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Birdsong is a learned motor behavior controlled by an interconnected structure of neural nuclei. This pathway is bilaterally organized, with anatomically indistinguishable structures in each brain hemisphere. In this work, we present a computational model whose variables are the average activities of different neural nuclei of the song system of oscine birds. Two of the variables are linked to the air sac pressure and the tension of the labia during canary song production. We show that these time dependent gestures are capable of driving a model of the vocal organ to synthesize realistic canary like songs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo Gogui Alonso
- Physics Department, FCEyN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, and IFIBA Conicet, Pabellón 1, Ciudad Universitaria, 1428 Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Ana Amador
- Physics Department, FCEyN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, and IFIBA Conicet, Pabellón 1, Ciudad Universitaria, 1428 Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gabriel B Mindlin
- Physics Department, FCEyN, Universidad de Buenos Aires, and IFIBA Conicet, Pabellón 1, Ciudad Universitaria, 1428 Buenos Aires, Argentina
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Vyssotski AL, Stepien AE, Keller GB, Hahnloser RHR. A Neural Code That Is Isometric to Vocal Output and Correlates with Its Sensory Consequences. PLoS Biol 2016; 14:e2000317. [PMID: 27723764 PMCID: PMC5056755 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.2000317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2016] [Accepted: 09/01/2016] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
What cortical inputs are provided to motor control areas while they drive complex learned behaviors? We study this question in the nucleus interface of the nidopallium (NIf), which is required for normal birdsong production and provides the main source of auditory input to HVC, the driver of adult song. In juvenile and adult zebra finches, we find that spikes in NIf projection neurons precede vocalizations by several tens of milliseconds and are insensitive to distortions of auditory feedback. We identify a local isometry between NIf output and vocalizations: quasi-identical notes produced in different syllables are preceded by highly similar NIf spike patterns. NIf multiunit firing during song precedes responses in auditory cortical neurons by about 50 ms, revealing delayed congruence between NIf spiking and a neural representation of auditory feedback. Our findings suggest that NIf codes for imminent acoustic events within vocal performance. Transmission of birdsong across generations requires tight interactions between auditory and vocal systems. However, how these interactions take place is poorly understood. We studied neuronal activity in the brain area located at the intersection between auditory and song motor areas, which is known as the nucleus interface of the nidopallium. By recording during singing from neurons in the nucleus interface of the nidopallium that project to motor areas, we found that their spiking precedes peaks in vocal amplitudes by about 50 ms. Notably, quasi-identical notes produced at different times in the song motif were preceded by highly similar spike patterns in these projection neurons. Such local isometry between output from the nucleus interface of the nidopallium and vocalizations suggests that projection neurons in this brain area code for imminent acoustic events within vocal performance. In support of this conclusion, during singing, projection neurons do not respond to playback of white noise sound stimuli, and activity in the nucleus interface of the nidopallium precedes by about 50 ms neural activity in the avian analogue of auditory cortex. Therefore, we conclude that the role of neuronal activity in the nucleus interface of the nidopallium could be to link desired auditory targets to suitable motor commands required for hitting these targets.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alexei L. Vyssotski
- Institute of Neuroinformatics, Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich/ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Anna E. Stepien
- Institute of Neuroinformatics, Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich/ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Georg B. Keller
- Institute of Neuroinformatics, Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich/ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Richard H. R. Hahnloser
- Institute of Neuroinformatics, Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich/ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Armstrong E, Abarbanel HDI. Model of the songbird nucleus HVC as a network of central pattern generators. J Neurophysiol 2016; 116:2405-2419. [PMID: 27535375 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00438.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2016] [Accepted: 08/10/2016] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
We propose a functional architecture of the adult songbird nucleus HVC in which the core element is a "functional syllable unit" (FSU). In this model, HVC is organized into FSUs, each of which provides the basis for the production of one syllable in vocalization. Within each FSU, the inhibitory neuron population takes one of two operational states: 1) simultaneous firing wherein all inhibitory neurons fire simultaneously, and 2) competitive firing of the inhibitory neurons. Switching between these basic modes of activity is accomplished via changes in the synaptic strengths among the inhibitory neurons. The inhibitory neurons connect to excitatory projection neurons such that during state 1 the activity of projection neurons is suppressed, while during state 2 patterns of sequential firing of projection neurons can occur. The latter state is stabilized by feedback from the projection to the inhibitory neurons. Song composition for specific species is distinguished by the manner in which different FSUs are functionally connected to each other. Ours is a computational model built with biophysically based neurons. We illustrate that many observations of HVC activity are explained by the dynamics of the proposed population of FSUs, and we identify aspects of the model that are currently testable experimentally. In addition, and standing apart from the core features of an FSU, we propose that the transition between modes may be governed by the biophysical mechanism of neuromodulation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eve Armstrong
- BioCircuits Institute, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California;
| | - Henry D I Abarbanel
- Department of Physics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California; and.,Marine Physical Laboratory (Scripps Institution of Oceanography), University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Auditory-induced neural dynamics in sensory-motor circuitry predict learned temporal and sequential statistics of birdsong. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016; 113:9641-6. [PMID: 27506786 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1606725113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Predicting future events is a critical computation for both perception and behavior. Despite the essential nature of this computation, there are few studies demonstrating neural activity that predicts specific events in learned, probabilistic sequences. Here, we test the hypotheses that the dynamics of internally generated neural activity are predictive of future events and are structured by the learned temporal-sequential statistics of those events. We recorded neural activity in Bengalese finch sensory-motor area HVC in response to playback of sequences from individuals' songs, and examined the neural activity that continued after stimulus offset. We found that the strength of response to a syllable in the sequence depended on the delay at which that syllable was played, with a maximal response when the delay matched the intersyllable gap normally present for that specific syllable during song production. Furthermore, poststimulus neural activity induced by sequence playback resembled the neural response to the next syllable in the sequence when that syllable was predictable, but not when the next syllable was uncertain. Our results demonstrate that the dynamics of internally generated HVC neural activity are predictive of the learned temporal-sequential structure of produced song and that the strength of this prediction is modulated by uncertainty.
Collapse
|
37
|
A Distributed Recurrent Network Contributes to Temporally Precise Vocalizations. Neuron 2016; 91:680-93. [PMID: 27397518 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2016.06.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2015] [Revised: 10/15/2015] [Accepted: 06/08/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
How do forebrain and brainstem circuits interact to produce temporally precise and reproducible behaviors? Birdsong is an elaborate, temporally precise, and stereotyped vocal behavior controlled by a network of forebrain and brainstem nuclei. An influential idea is that song premotor neurons in a forebrain nucleus (HVC) form a synaptic chain that dictates song timing in a top-down manner. Here we combine physiological, dynamical, and computational methods to show that song timing is not generated solely by a mechanism localized to HVC but instead is the product of a distributed and recurrent synaptic network spanning the forebrain and brainstem, of which HVC is a component.
Collapse
|
38
|
Matheson AMM, Sakata JT. Relationship between the Sequencing and Timing of Vocal Motor Elements in Birdsong. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0143203. [PMID: 26650933 PMCID: PMC4674110 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2015] [Accepted: 11/02/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Accurate coordination of the sequencing and timing of motor gestures is important for the performance of complex and evolutionarily relevant behaviors. However, the degree to which motor sequencing and timing are related remains largely unknown. Birdsong is a communicative behavior that consists of discrete vocal motor elements (‘syllables’) that are sequenced and timed in a precise manner. To reveal the relationship between syllable sequencing and timing, we analyzed how variation in the probability of syllable transitions at branch points, nodes in song with variable sequencing across renditions, correlated with variation in the duration of silent gaps between syllable transitions (‘gap durations’) for adult Bengalese finch song. We observed a significant negative relationship between transition probability and gap duration: more prevalent transitions were produced with shorter gap durations. We then assessed the degree to which long-term age-dependent changes and acute context-dependent changes to syllable sequencing and timing followed this inverse relationship. Age- but not context-dependent changes to syllable sequencing and timing were inversely related. On average, gap durations at branch points decreased with age, and the magnitude of this decrease was greater for transitions that increased in prevalence than for transitions that decreased in prevalence. In contrast, there was no systematic relationship between acute context-dependent changes to syllable sequencing and timing. Gap durations at branch points decreased when birds produced female-directed courtship song compared to when they produced undirected song, and the magnitude of this decrease was not related to the direction and magnitude of changes to transition probabilities. These analyses suggest that neural mechanisms that regulate syllable sequencing could similarly control syllable timing but also highlight mechanisms that can independently regulate syllable sequencing and timing.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Jon T. Sakata
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Growth and splitting of neural sequences in songbird vocal development. Nature 2015; 528:352-7. [PMID: 26618871 PMCID: PMC4957523 DOI: 10.1038/nature15741] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2015] [Accepted: 09/22/2015] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Neural sequences are a fundamental feature of brain dynamics underlying diverse behaviors, but the mechanisms by which they develop during learning remain unknown. Songbirds learn vocalizations composed of syllables; in adult birds, each syllable is produced by a different sequence of action potential bursts in the premotor cortical area HVC. Here we carried out recordings of large populations of HVC neurons in singing juvenile birds throughout learning to examine the emergence of neural sequences. Early in vocal development, HVC neurons begin producing rhythmic bursts, temporally locked to a ‘prototype’ syllable. Different neurons are active at different latencies relative to syllable onset to form a continuous sequence. Through development, as new syllables emerge from the prototype syllable, initially highly overlapping burst sequences become increasingly distinct. We propose a mechanistic model in which multiple neural sequences can emerge from the growth and splitting of a common precursor sequence.
Collapse
|
40
|
Wittenbach JD, Bouchard KE, Brainard MS, Jin DZ. An Adapting Auditory-motor Feedback Loop Can Contribute to Generating Vocal Repetition. PLoS Comput Biol 2015; 11:e1004471. [PMID: 26448054 PMCID: PMC4598084 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2015] [Accepted: 07/21/2015] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Consecutive repetition of actions is common in behavioral sequences. Although integration of sensory feedback with internal motor programs is important for sequence generation, if and how feedback contributes to repetitive actions is poorly understood. Here we study how auditory feedback contributes to generating repetitive syllable sequences in songbirds. We propose that auditory signals provide positive feedback to ongoing motor commands, but this influence decays as feedback weakens from response adaptation during syllable repetitions. Computational models show that this mechanism explains repeat distributions observed in Bengalese finch song. We experimentally confirmed two predictions of this mechanism in Bengalese finches: removal of auditory feedback by deafening reduces syllable repetitions; and neural responses to auditory playback of repeated syllable sequences gradually adapt in sensory-motor nucleus HVC. Together, our results implicate a positive auditory-feedback loop with adaptation in generating repetitive vocalizations, and suggest sensory adaptation is important for feedback control of motor sequences. Repetitions are common in animal vocalizations. Songs of many songbirds contain syllables that repeat a variable number of times, with non-Markovian distributions of repeat counts. The neural mechanism underlying such syllable repetitions is unknown. In this work, we show that auditory feedback plays an important role in sustaining syllable repetitions in the Bengalese finch. Deafening reduces syllable repetitions and skews the repeat number distribution towards short repeats. These effects are explained with our computational model, which suggests that syllable repeats are initially sustained by auditory feedback to the neural networks that drive the syllable production. The feedback strength weakens as the syllable repeats, increasing the likelihood that the syllable repetition stops. Neural recordings confirm such adaptation of auditory feedback to the auditory-motor circuit in the Bengalese finch. Our results suggests that sensory feedback can directly impact repetitions in motor sequences, and may provide insights into neural mechanisms of speech disorders such as stuttering.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jason D. Wittenbach
- Department of Physics and Center for Neural Engineering, the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Kristofer E. Bouchard
- Department of Physiology and Center for Integrative Neuroscience, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
- Department of Neurosurgery and Center for Neural Engineering and Prosthesis, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Michael S. Brainard
- Department of Physiology and Center for Integrative Neuroscience, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Dezhe Z. Jin
- Department of Physics and Center for Neural Engineering, the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
James LS, Sakata JT. Predicting plasticity: acute context-dependent changes to vocal performance predict long-term age-dependent changes. J Neurophysiol 2015; 114:2328-39. [PMID: 26311186 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00688.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2015] [Accepted: 08/24/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding the factors that predict and guide variation in behavioral change can lend insight into mechanisms of motor plasticity and individual differences in behavior. The performance of adult birdsong changes with age in a manner that is similar to rapid context-dependent changes to song. To reveal mechanisms of vocal plasticity, we analyzed the degree to which variation in the direction and magnitude of age-dependent changes to Bengalese finch song could be predicted by variation in context-dependent changes. Using a repeated-measures design, we found that variation in age-dependent changes to the timing, sequencing, and structure of vocal elements ("syllables") was significantly predicted by variation in context-dependent changes. In particular, the degree to which the duration of intersyllable gaps, syllable sequencing at branch points, and fundamental frequency of syllables within spontaneous [undirected (UD)] songs changed over time was correlated with the degree to which these features changed from UD song to female-directed (FD) song in young-adult finches (FDyoung). As such, the structure of some temporal features of UD songs converged over time onto the structure of FDyoung songs. This convergence suggested that the FDyoung song could serve as a stable target for vocal motor plasticity. Consequently, we analyzed the stability of FD song and found that the temporal structure of FD song changed significantly over time in a manner similar to UD song. Because FD song is considered a state of heightened performance, these data suggest that age-dependent changes could reflect practice-related improvements in vocal motor performance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Logan S James
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Jon T Sakata
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Matheson LE, Sun H, Sakata JT. Forebrain circuits underlying the social modulation of vocal communication signals. Dev Neurobiol 2015; 76:47-63. [PMID: 25959605 DOI: 10.1002/dneu.22298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2014] [Revised: 05/01/2015] [Accepted: 05/01/2015] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Across vertebrate species, signalers alter the structure of their communication signals based on the social context. For example, male Bengalese finches produce faster and more stereotyped songs when directing song to females (female-directed [FD] song) than when singing in isolation (undirected [UD] song), and such changes have been found to increase the attractiveness of a male's song. Despite the importance of such social influences, little is known about the mechanisms underlying the social modulation of communication signals. To this end, we analyzed differences in immediate early gene (EGR-1) expression when Bengalese finches produced FD or UD song. Relative to silent birds, EGR-1 expression was elevated in birds producing either FD or UD song throughout vocal control circuitry, including the interface nucleus of the nidopallium (NIf), HVC, the robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA), Area X, and the lateral magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium (LMAN). Moreover, EGR-1 expression was higher in HVC, RA, Area X, and LMAN in males producing UD song than in males producing FD song, indicating that social context modulated EGR-1 expression in these areas. However, EGR-1 expression was not significantly different between males producing FD or UD song in NIf, the primary vocal motor input into HVC, suggesting that context-dependent changes could arise de novo in HVC. The pattern of context-dependent differences in EGR-1 expression in the Bengalese finch was highly similar to that in the zebra finch and suggests that social context affects song structure by modulating activity throughout vocal control nuclei.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Herie Sun
- Department of Biology, McGill University
| | | |
Collapse
|
43
|
Matheson LE, Sakata JT. Catecholaminergic contributions to vocal communication signals. Eur J Neurosci 2015; 41:1180-94. [DOI: 10.1111/ejn.12885] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2014] [Revised: 02/25/2015] [Accepted: 03/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Laura E. Matheson
- Department of Biology; McGill University; Montreal QC H3A 1B1 Canada
| | - Jon T. Sakata
- Department of Biology; McGill University; Montreal QC H3A 1B1 Canada
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Alonso RG, Trevisan MA, Amador A, Goller F, Mindlin GB. A circular model for song motor control in Serinus canaria. Front Comput Neurosci 2015; 9:41. [PMID: 25904860 PMCID: PMC4387923 DOI: 10.3389/fncom.2015.00041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2015] [Accepted: 03/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Song production in songbirds is controlled by a network of nuclei distributed across several brain regions, which drives respiratory and vocal motor systems to generate sound. We built a model for birdsong production, whose variables are the average activities of different neural populations within these nuclei of the song system. We focus on the predictions of respiratory patterns of song, because these can be easily measured and therefore provide a validation for the model. We test the hypothesis that it is possible to construct a model in which (1) the activity of an expiratory related (ER) neural population fits the observed pressure patterns used by canaries during singing, and (2) a higher forebrain neural population, HVC, is sparsely active, simultaneously with significant motor instances of the pressure patterns. We show that in order to achieve these two requirements, the ER neural population needs to receive two inputs: a direct one, and its copy after being processed by other areas of the song system. The model is capable of reproducing the measured respiratory patterns and makes specific predictions on the timing of HVC activity during their production. These results suggest that vocal production is controlled by a circular network rather than by a simple top-down architecture.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo G Alonso
- Physics Department, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, University of Buenos Aires and IFIBA Conicet Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Marcos A Trevisan
- Physics Department, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, University of Buenos Aires and IFIBA Conicet Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Ana Amador
- Physics Department, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, University of Buenos Aires and IFIBA Conicet Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Franz Goller
- Department of Biology, University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Gabriel B Mindlin
- Physics Department, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, University of Buenos Aires and IFIBA Conicet Buenos Aires, Argentina
| |
Collapse
|
45
|
Tang C, Chehayeb D, Srivastava K, Nemenman I, Sober SJ. Millisecond-scale motor encoding in a cortical vocal area. PLoS Biol 2014; 12:e1002018. [PMID: 25490022 PMCID: PMC4260785 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1002018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2014] [Accepted: 10/24/2014] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Analyzing brain activity in songbirds suggests that the nervous system controls behavior by precisely modulating the timing pattern of electrical events. Studies of motor control have almost universally examined firing rates to investigate how the brain shapes behavior. In principle, however, neurons could encode information through the precise temporal patterning of their spike trains as well as (or instead of) through their firing rates. Although the importance of spike timing has been demonstrated in sensory systems, it is largely unknown whether timing differences in motor areas could affect behavior. We tested the hypothesis that significant information about trial-by-trial variations in behavior is represented by spike timing in the songbird vocal motor system. We found that neurons in motor cortex convey information via spike timing far more often than via spike rate and that the amount of information conveyed at the millisecond timescale greatly exceeds the information available from spike counts. These results demonstrate that information can be represented by spike timing in motor circuits and suggest that timing variations evoke differences in behavior. A central question in neuroscience is how neurons use patterns of electrical events to represent sensory information and control behavior. Neurons might use two different codes to transmit information. First, signals might be conveyed by the total number of electrical events (called “action potentials”) that a neuron produces. Alternately, the timing pattern of action potentials, as distinct from the total number of action potentials produced, might be used to transmit information. Although many studies have shown that timing can convey information about sensory inputs, such as visual scenery or sound waveforms, the role of action potential timing in the control of complex, learned behaviors is largely unknown. Here, by analyzing the pattern of action potentials produced in a songbird's brain as it precisely controls vocal behavior, we demonstrate that far more information about upcoming behavior is present in spike timing than in the total number of spikes fired. This work suggests that timing can be equally (or more) important in motor systems as in sensory systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claire Tang
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Diala Chehayeb
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Kyle Srivastava
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Ilya Nemenman
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
- Department of Physics, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Samuel J. Sober
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
46
|
Sweeney LB, Kelley DB. Harnessing vocal patterns for social communication. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2014; 28:34-41. [PMID: 24995669 PMCID: PMC4177452 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2014.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2014] [Revised: 04/23/2014] [Accepted: 06/04/2014] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Work on vocal communication, influenced by a drive to understand the evolution of language, has focused on auditory processing and forebrain control of learned vocalizations. The actual hindbrain neural mechanisms used to create communication signals are understudied, in part because of the difficulty of experimental studies in species that rely on respiration for vocalization. In these experimental systems-including those that embody vocal learning-vocal behaviors have rhythmic qualities. Recent studies using molecular markers and 'fictive' patterns produced by isolated brains are beginning to reveal how hindbrain circuits generate vocal patterns. Insights from central pattern generators for respiration and locomotion are illuminating common neural and developmental mechanisms. Choice of vocal patterns is responsive to socially salient input. Studies of the vertebrate social brain network suggest mechanisms used to integrate socially salient information and produce an appropriate vocal response.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lora B Sweeney
- Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, Salk Institute, 10010 N Torrey Pines Rd, La Jolla, CA 92037, United States
| | - Darcy B Kelley
- Dept. of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, 1616 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
47
|
James LS, Sakata JT. Vocal motor changes beyond the sensitive period for song plasticity. J Neurophysiol 2014; 112:2040-52. [PMID: 25057147 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00217.2014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Behavior is critically shaped during sensitive periods in development. Birdsong is a learned vocal behavior that undergoes dramatic plasticity during a sensitive period of sensorimotor learning. During this period, juvenile songbirds engage in vocal practice to shape their vocalizations into relatively stereotyped songs. By the time songbirds reach adulthood, their songs are relatively stable and thought to be "crystallized." Recent studies, however, highlight the potential for adult song plasticity and suggest that adult song could naturally change over time. As such, we investigated the degree to which temporal and spectral features of song changed over time in adult Bengalese finches. We observed that the sequencing and timing of song syllables became more stereotyped over time. Increases in the stereotypy of syllable sequencing were due to the pruning of infrequently produced transitions and, to a lesser extent, increases in the prevalence of frequently produced transitions. Changes in song tempo were driven by decreases in the duration and variability of intersyllable gaps. In contrast to significant changes to temporal song features, we found little evidence that the spectral structure of adult song syllables changed over time. These data highlight differences in the degree to which temporal and spectral features of adult song change over time and support evidence for distinct mechanisms underlying the control of syllable sequencing, timing, and structure. Furthermore, the observed changes to temporal song features are consistent with a Hebbian framework of behavioral plasticity and support the notion that adult song should be considered a form of vocal practice.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Logan S James
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Jon T Sakata
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
48
|
Abstract
Mirror neurons are theorized to serve as a neural substrate for spoken language in humans, but the existence and functions of auditory-vocal mirror neurons in the human brain remain largely matters of speculation. Songbirds resemble humans in their capacity for vocal learning and depend on their learned songs to facilitate courtship and individual recognition. Recent neurophysiological studies have detected putative auditory-vocal mirror neurons in a sensorimotor region of the songbird's brain that plays an important role in expressive and receptive aspects of vocal communication. This review discusses the auditory and motor-related properties of these cells, considers their potential role on song learning and communication in relation to classical studies of birdsong, and points to the circuit and developmental mechanisms that may give rise to auditory-vocal mirroring in the songbird's brain.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Richard Mooney
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, , PO Box 3209, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
Schmidt MF, Martin Wild J. The respiratory-vocal system of songbirds: anatomy, physiology, and neural control. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2014; 212:297-335. [PMID: 25194204 DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-444-63488-7.00015-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
This wide-ranging review presents an overview of the respiratory-vocal system in songbirds, which are the only other vertebrate group known to display a degree of respiratory control during song rivalling that of humans during speech; this despite the fact that the peripheral components of both the respiratory and vocal systems differ substantially in the two groups. We first provide a brief description of these peripheral components in songbirds (lungs, air sacs and respiratory muscles, vocal organ (syrinx), upper vocal tract) and then proceed to a review of the organization of central respiratory-related neurons in the spinal cord and brainstem, the latter having an organization fundamentally similar to that of the ventral respiratory group of mammals. The second half of the review describes the nature of the motor commands generated in a specialized "cortical" song control circuit and how these might engage brainstem respiratory networks to shape the temporal structure of song. We also discuss a bilaterally projecting "respiratory-thalamic" pathway that links the respiratory system to "cortical" song control nuclei. This necessary pathway for song originates in the brainstem's primary inspiratory center and is hypothesized to play a vital role in synchronizing song motor commands both within and across hemispheres.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marc F Schmidt
- Department of Biology and Neuroscience Program, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
| | - J Martin Wild
- Department of Anatomy with Radiology, School of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
| |
Collapse
|
50
|
Day NF, Nick TA. Rhythmic cortical neurons increase their oscillations and sculpt basal ganglia signaling during motor learning. Dev Neurobiol 2013; 73:754-68. [PMID: 23776169 DOI: 10.1002/dneu.22098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2012] [Accepted: 05/28/2013] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
The function and modulation of neural circuits underlying motor skill may involve rhythmic oscillations (Feller, 1999; Marder and Goaillard, 2006; Churchland et al., 2012). In the proposed pattern generator for birdsong, the cortical nucleus HVC, the frequency and power of oscillatory bursting during singing increases with development (Crandall et al., 2007; Day et al., 2009). We examined the maturation of cellular activity patterns that underlie these changes. Single unit ensemble recording combined with antidromic identification (Day et al., 2011) was used to study network development in anesthetized zebra finches. Autocovariance quantified oscillations within single units. A subset of neurons oscillated in the theta/alpha/mu/beta range (8-20 Hz), with greater power in adults compared to juveniles. Across the network, the normalized oscillatory power in the 8-20 Hz range was greater in adults than juveniles. In addition, the correlated activity between rhythmic neuron pairs increased with development. We next examined the functional impact of the oscillators on the output neurons of HVC. We found that the firing of oscillatory neurons negatively correlated with the activity of cortico-basal ganglia neurons (HVC(X)s), which project to Area X (the song basal ganglia). If groups of oscillators work together to tonically inhibit and precisely control the spike timing of adult HVC(X)s with coordinated release from inhibition, then the activity of HVC(X)s in juveniles should be decreased relative to adults due to uncorrelated, tonic inhibition. Consistent with this hypothesis, HVC(X)s had lower activity in juveniles. These data reveal network changes that shape cortical-to-basal ganglia signaling during motor learning.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nancy F Day
- Department of Neuroscience, the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minnesota, 55455; Graduate Program in Neuroscience, the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minnesota, 55455; Center for Neurobehavioral Development, the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minnesota, 55455
| | | |
Collapse
|