Representation of the cochlea in primary auditory cortex of the ferret (Mustela putorius).
In seven barbiturate-anesthetized ferrets, we explored the acoustically sensitive cortex with conventional microelectrode mapping techniques. A tonotopically organized field was found whose orientation was such that high tonal frequencies were represented dorsally, and low frequencies ventrally. Within this field, neurons typically had short (12-20 ms) latent periods to first spikes. In conjunction with extant anatomical evidence on the connectivity of this region, these data suggest that this field represents the ferret's primary auditory cortex.
D000818:Animals; D001303:Auditory Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D001309:Auditory Threshold / Q000502:physiology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002335:Carnivora / Q000502:physiology*; D003051:Cochlea / Q000502:physiology*; D005289:Ferrets / Q000502:physiology*; D005829:Geniculate Bodies / Q000502:physiology; D010898:Pitch Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology