Classical conditioning rapidly induces specific changes in frequency receptive fields of single neurons in secondary and ventral ectosylvian auditory cortical fields.

To determine if learning-induced changes in the response of auditory cortical neurons to a conditioned stimulus (CS) reflect general changes in cellular excitability or alterations in signal processing that are specific to that stimulus, we determined frequency receptive fields (FRFs) of single neurons in secondary and ventral ectosylvian auditory fields of the cat during classical conditioning. Associative changes in FRFs of most cells were specific to the frequency of the CS, established rapidly and reversed by extinction. Thus, learning causes specific changes in cortical processing of sounds whose significance is acquired.