Manifestation of Acoustic Trauma in the Auditory Cortex

Exposure to loud sounds damages the auditory periphery and induces maladaptive changes in central parts of the auditory system, but it is still unclear which types of inhibitory interneurons are affected by acoustic trauma. Novák and colleagues used single-unit electrophysiological recording and two-photon calcium imaging in anaesthetized mice to evaluate the effects of acute acoustic trauma on the response properties of neurons in the core auditory cortex. In this podcast, Editor-in-Chief Bill Yates (University of Pittsburgh), Associate Editor Conny Kopp-Scheinpflug (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) and content expert Jason Middleton (Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center) join authors Josef Syka (Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic) and Ondrej Novák (Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic) in an engaging discussion about their recent study. Is there a selective layer-dependent impact of acute acoustic trauma on the activity of cortical interneurons? Listen and find out.

Immediate manifestation of acoustic trauma in the auditory cortex is layer-specific and cell type-dependent
Ondřej Novák, Ondřej Zelenka, Tomáš Hromádka, Josef Syka
Journal of Neurophysiology, published April 8, 2016. DOI: 10.1152/jn.00810.2015.