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Where is 'where' in the human auditory cortex?

Nature Neuroscience volume 5, pages 905–909 (2002)Cite this article

Abstract

We examine the functional characteristics of auditory cortical areas that are sensitive to spatial cues in the human brain, and determine whether they can be dissociated from parietal lobe mechanisms. Three positron emission tomography (PET) experiments were conducted using a speaker array permitting quasi free-field sound presentation within the scanner. Posterior auditory cortex responded to sounds that varied in their spatial distribution, but only when multiple complex stimuli were presented simultaneously, implicating this cortical system in disambiguation of overlapping auditory sources. We also found that the right inferior parietal cortex is specifically recruited in localization tasks, and that its activity predicts behavioral performance, consistent with its involvement in sensorimotor integration and spatial transformation. These findings clarify the functional roles of posterior auditory and parietal cortices, and help to reconcile competing models of auditory cortical organization.

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Figure 1: Methods.
Figure 2: Neuroimaging results.
Figure 3: Behavioral results.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by operating grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the McDonnell-Pew Cognitive Neuroscience Program. We thank A.C. Evans, B. Pike and the staff of the McConnell Brain Imaging Centre for their assistance, and J. Rauschecker for comments on an earlier version of this manuscript.

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Author notes

  1. Robert J. Zatorre, Marc Bouffard, Pierre Ahad & Pascal Belin

    Present address: Université de Montréal, CP 6128 succ Centre-Ville, Montréal, Québec, H3C 3J7, Canada

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, H3A2B4, Quebec, Canada

    Robert J. Zatorre, Marc Bouffard, Pierre Ahad & Pascal Belin

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Correspondence to Robert J. Zatorre.

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Zatorre, R., Bouffard, M., Ahad, P. et al. Where is 'where' in the human auditory cortex?. Nat Neurosci 5, 905–909 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn904

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