Neural basis of songbird vocal learning during critical period

• Project/Area Number: 26430027
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Neurophysiology / General neuroscience
• Research Institution: Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University
• Principal Investigator: Yanagihara Shin 沖縄科学技術大学院大学, 臨界期の神経メカニズム研究ユニット, 研究員 (60392156)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Project Status: Completed (Fiscal Year 2016)
• Budget Amount: ¥5,070,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,170,000); Fiscal Year 2016: ¥780,000 (Direct Cost: ¥600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥180,000); Fiscal Year 2015: ¥780,000 (Direct Cost: ¥600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥180,000); Fiscal Year 2014: ¥3,510,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥810,000)
• Keywords: ソングバード / 発声学習 / 聴覚 / 記憶 / 学習 / 音声模倣学習 / 臨界期 / 社会的つながり / 神経活動 / 社会的関係

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Juvenile songbirds listen to a tutor song and memorize it during critical period. Thereafter, they improve their vocalizations by comparing their ongoing songs and memorized tutor song. In this study, we searched for neurons which represent tutor song memory by recording neuronal activity in freely behaving condition. We found that a group of auditory cortical neurons which exhibit selective auditory responses to the memorized tutor song. These tutor song selective auditory cortical neurons may represent tutor song memory.

Research Products

• [Journal Article] Auditory experience-dependent cortical circuit shaping for memory formation in bird song learning. (2016)
  • Author(s): Yanagihara S, Yazaki-Sugiyama Y.
  • Journal Title: Nature Communications Volume: 7 Issue: 1 Pages: 11946-11946
  • DOI: 10.1038/ncomms11946
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Acknowledgement Compliant
• [Journal Article] Acute inhibition of a cortical motor area impairs vocal control in singing zebra finches (2015)
  • Author(s): Yazaki-Sugiyama, Y. Yanagihara, S. Fuller, P. M. Lazarus, M.
  • Journal Title: European Journal of Neuroscience Volume: 41 Pages: 97-108
  • NAID: 120007136463
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access
• [Presentation] State-dependent auditory selectivity for familiar songs in the auditory association cortex of juvenile songbirds (2015)
  • Author(s): Shin Yanagihara and Yoko Yazaki-Sugiyama
  • Organizer: 45th Annual Meeting of Society for Neuroscience
  • Place of Presentation: シカゴ
  • Year and Date: 2015-10-17
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Neural representation of auditory memory in the songbird auditory cortex (2015)
  • Author(s): Shin Yanagihara and Yoko Yazaki-Sugiyama
  • Organizer: 86th Annual Meeting of the Zoological Society of Japan
  • Place of Presentation: 新潟
  • Year and Date: 2015-09-17
• [Presentation] Experience-dependent sharpening of neural selectivity to learned birdsongs in the auditory cortex of juvenile songbirds (2015)
  • Author(s): Shin Yanagihara and Yoko Yazaki-Sugiyama
  • Organizer: 38th Annual Meeting of Japan Neuroscience Society
  • Place of Presentation: 神戸
  • Year and Date: 2015-07-28
• [Presentation] ソングバード大脳聴覚野における聴覚記憶の脳内表現 (2015)
  • Author(s): 柳原真
  • Organizer: 日本動物学会北海道支部講演会（第５５９回）
  • Place of Presentation: 北海道大学
  • Year and Date: 2015-06-26
  • Invited
• [Presentation] Emergence of neural selectivity for memorized birdsongs in the higher-level auditory cortex of juvenile songbird (2014)
  • Author(s): Shin Yanagihara and Yoko Yazaki-Sugiyama
  • Organizer: 44th Annual Meeting of Society for Neuroscience
  • Place of Presentation: Washington DC, USA
  • Year and Date: 2014-11-15 – 2014-11-19
• [Presentation] Emergence of neural selectivity for learned songs in the songbird auditory cortex (2014)
  • Author(s): Shin Yanagihara and Yoko Yazaki-Sugiyama
  • Organizer: 37th Annual Meeting of Japan Neuroscience Society
  • Place of Presentation: Yokohanma, Japan
  • Year and Date: 2014-09-11 – 2014-09-13
• [Presentation] Auditory experience shapes neural selectivity to a tutor’s song in the songbird auditory cortex (2014)
  • Author(s): Shin Yanagihara and Yoko Yazaki-Sugiyama
  • Organizer: International Society for Neuroethology
  • Place of Presentation: Sapporo, JAPAN
  • Year and Date: 2014-07-28 – 2014-08-01