Pure Tone Discrimination
Objective: Assessment of the ability to discriminate between pure tones as conditioned stimuli in an avoidance task, specifically examining the role of auditory cortex in pure tone discrimination
Gather these items before starting the experiment. Check off items as you prepare.
1 item available from ConductScience
Estimated: $6,900.00
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Product links help support this free resource.
Protocol Steps
Pure tone discrimination training setup
Animals are trained in a GO/NO-GO avoidance task using pure tones as conditioned stimuli in a two-way shuttle box
Note: Task involves crossing a hurdle to avoid mild foot shock in response to reinforced stimulus (CR+) and avoiding false alarms to unreinforced stimulus (CR-)
View evidence from paper
“Learning behavior and performance were studied in a GO/NO-GO task aiming at avoidance of a mild foot shock by crossing a hurdle in a two-way shuttle box”
Monitoring conditioned responses
Track hurdle crossing as conditioned response to reinforced stimulus (CR+), false alarms in response to unreinforced stimulus (CR-), intertrial activity, and reaction times
Note: Multiple behavioral parameters are measured simultaneously during the task
View evidence from paper
“Hurdle crossing as the conditioned response to the reinforced stimulus (CR+), as false alarm in response to the unreinforced stimulus (CR−), intertrial activity, and reaction times were monitored”
Bilateral auditory cortex ablation (if applicable)
Perform bilateral ablation of auditory cortex in experimental animals; timing varies between naive animals (before training) and pretrained animals (after training)
Note: Lesion timing is critical as it produces different effects on discrimination performance
View evidence from paper
“This study examines the role of auditory cortex in the Mongolian gerbil in differential conditioning to pure tones and to linearly frequency-modulated (FM) tones by analyzing the effects of bilateral auditory cortex ablation”
Analyze pure tone discrimination performance
Evaluate effects of lesion on pure tone discrimination by comparing CR+ rates, CR- rates, and other behavioral measures between lesioned and control animals
Note: Analysis reveals whether auditory cortex ablation affects pure tone discrimination ability
View evidence from paper
“The analysis revealed no effects of lesion on pure tone discrimination but impairment of FM tone discrimination”