Geometry and orientation of neuronal processes in cat primary auditory cortex (AI) related to characteristic-frequency maps.

Abstract

Microelectrode mapping and horseradish peroxidase oxidase histochemistry were combined to study the relationship between the characteristic-frequency representation and the intrinsic connectivity of the primary auditory cortex in the cat. Small extracellular iontophoretic injections of horseradish peroxidase within the characteristic-frequency map resulted in labeling of neuronal processes that, in the tangential plane, radiated out asymmetrically from the injection site over distances of several millimeters. The heaviest concentration of labeled fibers was along an axis parallel with the orientation of the isofrequency line within which the injection had been made. Thus, primary field neurons that have the same or a similar characteristic frequency have the potential of being preferentially interconnected.