One-dimensional sound waveforms are transformed to neuronal signals in the cochlear and transmitted to superior neuronal circuits. In the auditory system, wide range of sound information is abstracted in lower levels, and they are purified or re-organized in the higher order circuits. The neuronal circuits higher than the superior olivary complex are considered to receive binaural input and play important roles in neuronal information processing as sound localization.
In the mature brain, some neuronal circuits expressed perineuronal nets (PNNs). PNNs are specialized extracellular matrix structures containing proteoglycan, and they are thought to play a critical role in regulation of synaptic plasticity, especially in the visual cortex. PNNs are also expressed in some areas of the auditory pathway. However little is known about the role of PNNs in auditory neuronal functions.
Here we analyzed the neurochemical diversity of PNNs in the auditory pathway. We also performed head fixed electrophysiological recordings with binaural sound stimulations, and investigated the potential relationship between electrophysiological auditory responses and PNNs. Our findings offer new information to facilitate an understanding of the mechanism of auditory system.