![How the Brain Adapts to Enhance Hearing and Learning How the Brain Adapts to Enhance Hearing and Learning](https://images.medindia.net/health-images/1200_1000/brain-thickness-and-folding-are-linked-to-personality-traits.jpg)
New study reveals how brain changes when you learn a sound
Go to source)? The human brain is remarkably skilled at adjusting what we hear based on our surroundings or current priorities, but how exactly the brain detects, filters, and reacts to sounds remains a mystery.
‘Did You Know?
The orbitofrontal cortex, typically linked to decision-making, helps the brain adapt to different hearing contexts. #neuroscience #medindia’
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Now, biologists at the University of Maryland are closer to unraveling this mystery. Using an animal model, the researchers discovered that the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), a brain region typically associated with decision-making rather than hearing, plays a key role in helping the auditory cortex (a primary hearing center of the brain) adapt to changing contexts or situations. The team's findings were published in the journal Current Biology on July 11, 2024.The orbitofrontal cortex, typically linked to decision-making, helps the brain adapt to different hearing contexts. #neuroscience #medindia’
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The Role of the Orbitofrontal Cortex in Context-Dependent Hearing
“Our hearing doesn’t just depend on the sounds around us. It also relies heavily on what we’re doing and what’s important to us at that moment,” explained UMD Biology Assistant Professor Melissa Caras, the paper’s senior author. “Understanding the neural mechanisms responsible for these adjustments can also lead to a better understanding of and potential treatments for neurodevelopmental disorders like autism, dyslexia or schizophrenia—conditions where sensory regulation goes awry.”To closely examine the brain circuitry involved in the hearing process, the researchers turned to gerbils, small mammals whose basic hearing system is similar to that of humans. The animals were exposed to sound patterns in two different contexts. In one context, the animals listened to sounds passively without needing to do anything. In the other, the animals had to perform a specific action in response to the sounds they heard. By recording and manipulating the brain activity of the animals, the team discovered that the OFC helped the animals switch between passive and active listening.
“In short, the OFC sends signals to the auditory cortex when it’s time to pay closer attention to sounds,” Caras said. “It’s not certain whether the signals are sent directly or indirectly via an intermediary brain region, but we do know that activity in the OFC is essential to how the gerbils behaved in our experiments.”
Implications for Human Health
When the OFC was silenced, the animals’ auditory cortex did not switch between passive and active listening, impairing their ability to pay attention to and react to a behaviorally relevant sound.Advertisement
While this study was conducted in animals, Caras says the findings may have notable implications for human health and well-being. The ability to quickly shift attention to important sounds is essential for many day-to-day activities including communicating with others and navigating busy or dangerous environments.
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Reference:
- New study reveals how brain changes when you learn a sound - (https://www.bme.jhu.edu/news-events/news/new-study-reveals-how-brain-changes-when-you-learn-a-sound/)
Source-Eurekalert