Auditory midbrain representation of a break in interaural correlation

The auditory peripheral system filters broadband sounds into narrowband waves and decomposes narrowband waves into quickly varying temporal fine structures (TFSs) and slowly varying envelopes. When a noise is presented binaurally (with the interaural correlation being 1), human listeners can detect a transient break in interaural correlation (BIC), which does not alter monaural inputs substantially. The central correlates of BIC are unknown. This study examined whether phase locking-based frequency-following responses (FFRs) of neuron populations in the rat auditory midbrain [inferior colliculus (IC)] to interaurally correlated steady-state narrowband noises are modulated by introduction of a BIC. The results showed that the noise-induced FFR exhibited both a TFS component (FFRTFS) and an envelope component (FFREnv), signaling the center frequency and bandwidth, respectively. Introduction of either a BIC or an interaurally correlated amplitude gap (which had the summated amplitude matched to the BIC) significantly reduced both FFRTFS and FFREnv. However, the BIC-induced FFRTFS reduction and FFREnv reduction were not correlated with the amplitude gap-induced FFRTFS reduction and FFREnv reduction, respectively. Thus, although introduction of a BIC does not affect monaural inputs, it causes a temporary reduction in sustained responses of IC neuron populations to the noise. This BIC-induced FFR reduction is not based on a simple linear summation of noise signals.