# Development of hemispheric specializations during Auditory Cortex critical periods

> **NIH NIH R21** · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $24,597

## Abstract

Project Summary Although the organization of the neocortex includes many consistent patterns
of connections between cells, individual cortical areas also contain unique circuit-motifs that
enable them to perform specific functions. One such specialization is left-hemisphere language
dominance, which is well known in humans. Mice and other mammals also use vocalizations for
social and reproductive interactions and show hemispheric asymmetry in processing these
vocalizations. This similarity suggests there may be shared mechanisms for vocal processing
that can be studied using the powerful circuit analysis tools available in animal models. This
proposal focuses on the mouse auditory cortex, which preferentially responds to particular
sound combinations across frequencies and time, in a context-dependent fashion, and thus
encodes important components of species-specific vocalizations. Our work has revealed
connectivity differences between the left and right auditory cortices that are hearing-experience
dependent, but it is unknown how these differences arise. The long-term goal of this laboratory
is to identify specialized circuit features in the auditory cortex that underlie the ability to encode
information that is important for social communication and how they go awry in
neurodevelopmental communication disorders. The overall objective of this proposal is to
identify hemispheric differences in the timing of critical periods, and emergence of the
behavioral relevance of lateralized processing. This proposal will test the working hypothesis
that hemispheric specializations in auditory processing arise from differences in the maturation
rate between the left and right auditory cortices. Maturational differences will be identified
through hemispheric comparison of molecular markers related to the onset and closure of
critical periods, and circuit- motif development using electrophysiology. We will also identify
differences in the emergence of lateralized function with behavioral assays. Preliminary data in
this proposal demonstrate significant differences in the maturation rate between the left and
right auditory cortices. This approach is innovative because it is the first study to dissect
hemispheric differences at the circuitry and functional level in the auditory cortex, and test a
novel hypothesis of its origin. The research proposed here is significant because it is expected
to reveal fundamental insights into the development of specializations in auditory cortical
function, which will provide powerful tools to study how the auditory cortex encodes
communication sounds and how this encoding goes awry in neurodevelopmental disorders.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11013647
- **Project number:** 7R21DC019737-03
- **Recipient organization:** WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Hysell Viviana Oviedo
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $24,597
- **Award type:** 7
- **Project period:** 2021-07-09 → 2024-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11013647

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11013647, Development of hemispheric specializations during Auditory Cortex critical periods (7R21DC019737-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-28 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11013647. Licensed CC0.

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