Discharge rate-level functions from dorsal cochlear nucleus single units in response to acoustic and electrical stimulation of the auditory nerve.
Discharge rate-level (I/O) functions possessed by dorsal cochlear nucleus (DCN) units were examined, in response to bipolar electrical stimulation of the cochlea of the barbiturate-anesthetized cat. Spontaneously active units usually possessed nonmonotonic functions with a minimum, and spontaneously inactive units usually possessed monotonic functions or nonmonotonic functions with a maximum (NM+). In response to acoustic high-pass filtered noise, the function relating discharge rate and cutoff frequency resembled the same unit's I/O function to electrical stimulation. The I/O functions to acoustic characteristic tones were usually monotonic or NM+. These results suggest that in the DCN, a prerequisite for the generation of acoustic-like responses with an electrical stimulus may be the matching of the cochlear place and spatial extent activated by each stimulus.
O'Leary
S J
SJ
Department of Otolaryngology, University of Melbourne, Australia.
Clark
G M
GM
Tong
Y C
YC
D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D000818:Animals; D002415:Cats; D017626:Cochlear Nucleus / Q000502:physiology*; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005071:Evoked Potentials; D005072:Evoked Potentials, Auditory; D000159:Vestibulocochlear Nerve / Q000502:physiology*