# Crossmodal plasticity in the auditory cortex in the precritical period

> **NIH NIH R21** · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $163,750

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Sensory experience facilitates structural and functional maturation of the developing nervous system, and
sensory deprivation severely impairs them. Although the time course for experience-driven sensory development
is specific for each modality, the developing brain acts as a whole. Therefore, sensory perturbation in one
modality results in adaptive reorganization of neural pathways within the unaffected, spared modalities, a
phenomenon known as “crossmodal plasticity.” Although a large body of literature has demonstrated adaptive
crossmodal changes in the auditory cortex (ACtx) during the `classic critical period' (brief developmental period
of enhanced sensory plasticity) after visual deprivation, it is, however, still not known how early in development
crossmodal changes emerge. Based on recent findings that peripheral perturbations can alter ACtx circuits and
function during the first two postnatal weeks of newborn mice (precritical period) and that crossmodal
corticocortical connections are observed between the ACtx and visual cortex (VCtx), we hypothesized that
complete retinal deprivation at birth results in crossmodal functional changes and circuit rearrangement in the
ACtx and VCtx, during the precritical period. We will perform in vivo calcium imaging in unanesthetized mouse
pups during the first two postnatal weeks before and soon after their ears and eyes are open (onset of the critical
period) to assess crossmodal functional changes in the ACtx and VCtx following bilateral enucleation (complete
retinal deprivation) at birth. We will also perform a combination of laser scanning photostimulation and in vitro
whole cell patch clamp recording in slices as well as in vivo extracellular electrophysiology in unanesthetized
pups to assess intra- and inter-cortical circuit changes following bilateral enucleation at birth. Results from the
proposed experiments will provide, for the first time, functional evidence and a thorough assessment of
crossmodal changes in the ACtx and VCtx during the precritical period as a result of complete retinal deprivation
since birth and will provide a clear template to guide investigation of early crossmodal changes in other sensory
pathways (e.g., somatosensory) and in other species during development. Moreover, the results will accentuate
the impact of well-balanced ambient sensory environment in sensory development and will shed light on novel
therapeutic interventions for the recovery of function of deprived senses in infants with sensory disorders, e.g.,
congenital hearing impairment.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10794608
- **Project number:** 1R21DC020560-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Didhiti Mukherjee
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $163,750
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2023-12-01 → 2026-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10794608

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10794608, Crossmodal plasticity in the auditory cortex in the precritical period (1R21DC020560-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10794608. Licensed CC0.

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