Spectrally specific temporal analyses of spike-train responses to complex sounds: A unifying framework

Significant scientific and translational questions remain in auditory neuroscience surrounding the neural correlates of perception. Relating perceptual data collected from humans can be useful; however, human-based are typically limited to evoked far-field responses, which lack anatomical physiological specificity. Laboratory-controlled preclinical animal models offer advantage comparing single-unit responses same animals. This ability provides opportunities develop invaluable insight into proper interpretations benefits both basic-science studies mechanisms applications, e.g., diagnostic development. However, these comparisons have been by a disconnect between types spectrotemporal analyses used with spike trains results because response fundamentally different (point-process versus continuous-valued signals) even though themselves related. Here, we describe unifying framework study temporal coding complex sounds that allows spike-train evoked-response analyzed compared using advanced signal-processing techniques. The uses set peristimulus-time histograms computed polarity-alternating stimuli allow spectral slow (envelope) rapid (temporal fine structure) components. Demonstrated include: (1) novel spectrally specific temporal-coding measures less confounded distortions due hair-cell transduction, synaptic rectification, stochasticity previous metrics, correlogram peak-height, (2) modulation (magnitude phase), directly modern perceptually based speech intelligibility (e.g., depend on filter banks), (3) superior resolution analyzing representation nonstationary sounds, such as music. significantly expands potential advance our understanding deficits real-world listening following sensorineural hearing loss.