Lateralization of auditory functions

In Human, brain asymmetry is an established functional feature that underlies the perception of speech and music. Whereas the left auditory cortex is specialized in processing fast temporal components of speech sounds, the right is more sensitive to spectral modulations. However, circuit features and neural computations behind these lateralized spectrotemporal processes are poorly understood. To answer these mechanistic questions and to determine whether this is unique to Human, we will use mice and probe decoding ability of left and right auditory neurons to perceive temporally and spectrally modulated vocalizations. We will use large-scale electrophysiological recordings to shed light onto the neuronal circuits that drive lateralization of auditory functions. More generally, it will help us to understand how the two hemispheres can share labor to better compute and analyze the sensory world and how this specialization has emerged in vertebrates.