# neurophysiology behavioral role and organization of the auditory parabelt

> **NIH NIH R01** · NATHAN S. KLINE INSTITUTE FOR PSYCH RES · 2020 · $340,252

## Abstract

Project summary/abstract
Primate auditory cortex is composed of areas grouped in regions at 3 levels in a hierarchical order: core-belt-
parabelt. Each region is subdivided into multiple areas. Auditory information processing proceeds through
levels and through areas within every level. Information in the belt and parabelt regions diverges into parietal
(dorsal) and temporal lobe (ventral), as well as different regions of prefrontal cortex. Growing evidence
indicates that the representation of auditory information becomes more complex and abstract as the
processing advances. This project focuses on the properties of the parabelt (PB) region on the superior
temporal gyrus (STG) in macaque monkeys for two reasons. First, while PB is fairly well defined at a gross
anatomical level in monkeys (e.g. it divides into caudal and rostral areas, CPB and RPB, respectively) detailed
anatomical studies (architecture, intrinsic connectivity between CPB and RPB) have not been conducted. More
detailed microstructural characterization of the macaque PB may help to better define the human PB. Second,
while human STG has been implicated in various functions particularly related to perception of communication
signals like speech, the physiological properties of the macaque PB have not been systematically studied,
primarily due to the technical difficulties of accessing the macaque STG. Thus, the detailed auditory physiology
of the macaque PB holds some of the key information missing in our understanding of the organization and
functioning of the primate auditory cortex.
Our BROAD OBJECTIVE is to characterize the physiological properties, functions and organization of the PB
areas in primates. As PB areas are widely regarded as task-sensitive, we will record PB activity in monkeys
performing sensory tasks that entail active discrimination of the test stimuli. SPECIFIC AIM 1 is to
systematically characterize acoustic preferences (e.g. spectral and temporal tuning) of the PB neurons by
examine their responsiveness to a battery of auditory stimuli. This will provide the first ever detailed survey of
basic PB physiology. SPECIFIC AIM 2 is to characterize communication signal processing in PB. We examine
neural responses to conspecific vocalization while manipulating their sensory modality or spectral/temporal
domains and relate these responses to behavioral performance. Both AIMs also allow comparisons between
CPB and RPB, and between hemispheres, to provide more details about PB organization. SPECIFIC AIM 3 is
to investigate the network architecture of PB by exploring the connection patterns of PB anatomically and
neurophysiologically. This will help understand how PB areas interact to process information and pass it to
higher order areas. Several communication disorders (e.g. autism) implicate STG or higher level of auditory
systems for its impaired functionality. Basic properties of STG (PB areas in the case of monkeys) are essential
for understanding these, as well a...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9823875
- **Project number:** 5R01DC015780-04
- **Recipient organization:** NATHAN S. KLINE INSTITUTE FOR PSYCH RES
- **Principal Investigator:** Yoshinao Kajikawa
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $340,252
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2016-12-01 → 2021-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9823875

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9823875, neurophysiology behavioral role and organization of the auditory parabelt (5R01DC015780-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9823875. Licensed CC0.

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