Physiological systems in periphery and brainstem for signal extraction: bat as a model animal

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26280064
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Partial Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Perceptual information processing
• Research Institution: 独立行政法人国立病院機構(東京医療センター臨床研究センター) (2015-2016); Doshisha University (2014)
• Principal Investigator: Riquimaroux Hiroshi 独立行政法人国立病院機構(東京医療センター臨床研究センター), 政策医療企画研究部, 研究員 (90260207)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 船曳 和雄 公益財団法人先端医療振興財団, 先端医療センター研究所, 上席研究員 (00301234) ; 松尾 行雄 東北学院大学, 教養学部, 教授 (40323117) ; 小林 耕太 同志社大学, 生命医科学部, 准教授 (40512736) ; 飛龍 志津子 同志社大学, 生命医科学部, 准教授 (70449510)
• Research Collaborator: SIMMONS A. James Brown Univ., Dept. of Neuroscience, Professor ; YASHIRO Hidetaka 同志社大学, 生命医科学部
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 顕微脳内視鏡 / コウモリ / バイオソナー / 聴覚系中枢 / 聴覚系末梢 / 下丘 / 蝸牛マイクロフォン電位 / 複合活動電位

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We succeeded in recordings of the cochlear microphonics generated by hair cells in the inner ear and the compound action potentials generated by the cochlear nerve.
Then, we made successful recordings of calcium ion activity in the auditory brainstem (inferior colliculus) by a brain micro-endoscope where simultaneous measurements of optic calcium signal and electro-neurophysiological signal were made. The diameter of each optic fiber was 2-micron meters, which decided the spatial resolution. Simultaneous neural activities in different sites in the inferior colliculus were observed. At the same time electro-neurophysiological signals were recorded from the tip of the probe. However, it took about 50 milliseconds to obtain a single data point because of slowness of scanning image. Then, we modified the scanning methodology to adopt the line scanning, resulting in an amazing time resolution of 132 microseconds per data point. This time resolution is good enough for the auditory research.

Free Research Field

音響神経科学