Auditory Brainstem Response Wave III is Correlated with Extracellular Field Potentials from Nucleus Laminaris of the Barn Owl

The auditory brainstem response (ABR) is generated in the auditory brainstem by local current sources, which also give rise to extracellular field potentials (EFPs). The origins of both the ABR and the EFP are not well understood. We have recently found that EFPs, especially their dipole behavior, may be dominated by the branching patterns and the activity of axonal terminal zones [1]. To test the hypothesis that axons also shape the ABR, we used the well-described barn owl early auditory system. We recorded the ABR and a series of EFPs between the brain surface and nucleus laminaris (NL) in response to binaural clicks. The ABR and the EFP within and around NL are correlated. Together, our data suggest that axonal dipoles within the barn owl nucleus laminaris contribute to the ABR wave III. (C) 2018 The Author(s). Published by S. Hirzel Verlag . EAA. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license.