Tsukano Hiroaki, Horie Masao, Ohga Shinpei, Takahashi Kuniyuki, Kubota Yamato, Hishida Ryuichi, Takebayashi Hirohide, Shibuki Katsuei
Department of Neurophysiology, Brain Research Institute, Niigata University Niigata, Japan.
Division of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Graduate School of Medicine and Dental Sciences, Niigata University Niigata, Japan.
Front Neural Circuits. 2017 Feb 28;11:14. doi: 10.3389/fncir.2017.00014. eCollection 2017.
The auditory thalamus and auditory cortex (AC) are pivotal structures in the central auditory system. However, the thalamocortical mechanisms of processing sounds are largely unknown. Investigation of this process benefits greatly from the use of mice because the mouse is a powerful animal model in which various experimental techniques, especially genetic tools, can be applied. However, the use of mice has been limited in auditory research, and thus even basic anatomical knowledge of the mouse central auditory system has not been sufficiently collected. Recently, optical imaging combined with morphological analyses has enabled the elucidation of detailed anatomical properties of the mouse auditory system. These techniques have uncovered fine AC maps with multiple frequency-organized regions, each of which receives point-to-point thalamocortical projections from different origins inside the lemniscal auditory thalamus, the ventral division of the medial geniculate body (MGv). This precise anatomy now provides a platform for physiological research. In this mini review article, we summarize these recent achievements that will facilitate physiological investigations in the mouse auditory system.
听觉丘脑和听觉皮层（AC）是中枢听觉系统中的关键结构。然而，声音处理的丘脑皮质机制在很大程度上尚不清楚。由于小鼠是一种强大的动物模型，可应用各种实验技术，尤其是基因工具，因此对这一过程的研究从使用小鼠中受益匪浅。然而，小鼠在听觉研究中的应用一直受到限制，因此甚至小鼠中枢听觉系统的基本解剖学知识都尚未得到充分收集。最近，光学成像与形态学分析相结合，使得阐明小鼠听觉系统的详细解剖学特性成为可能。这些技术揭示了具有多个频率组织区域的精细AC图谱，每个区域都接收来自lemniscal听觉丘脑（内侧膝状体腹侧部，MGv）内不同起源的点对点丘脑皮质投射。这种精确的解剖结构现在为生理学研究提供了一个平台。在这篇小型综述文章中，我们总结了这些近期的成果，它们将有助于对小鼠听觉系统进行生理学研究。
