Single unit responses were recorded in the medial geniculate body (MGB) of anesthetized cats. In response to acoustical stimulation the properties of response latency, discharge pattern, frequency tuning, binaural interaction, and habituation were examined to allow an appraisal of the differentiation of the MGB by electrophysiological means. It is found that definite boundaries can be determined at which there is a distinct change in response properties; the position of these 'physiological boundaries' seems to correspond with the boundaries between the seven subnuclei of the MGB described by Morest in Golgi-stained material. Using these physiological boundaries to determine unit locations, population comparisons are made allowing the description of each subnucleus in terms of its auditory response properties. It is suggested that these properties, together with the limited information gained from Nissl cytoarchitecture, are sufficient to describe the location of physiological recording sites in the MGB.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	animal experiment; auditory system; binaural hearing; cat; central nervous system; cytoarchitecture; evoked auditory response; habituation; medial geniculate body; nonhuman; peripheral nervous system; single unit activity; tuning curve
Research Division:	Biomedical and Clinical Sciences
Research Group:	Neurosciences
Research Field:	Neurology and neuromuscular diseases
Objective Division:	Health
Objective Group:	Clinical health
Objective Field:	Clinical health not elsewhere classified
UTAS Author:	Calford, MB (Professor Mike Calford)
ID Code:	91248
Year Published:	1983
Web of Science® Times Cited:	197
Deposited By:	Research Division
Deposited On:	2014-05-13
Last Modified:	2014-05-13
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