Marmoset as a model system for studying neural basis of audition and social communication

• 作 者: Xiaoqin Wang
• 机 构: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
• 出 处: 国际听觉科学研讨会(fint2016)
• 发表日期: 2016年10期

　　Animal models play pivotal roles in neurophysiological studies of behaviors.In the past,studies of species like echolocating bats and songbirds have provided important insights into neural mechanisms for sound perception and vocal production.In comparison,much less has been learned from non-human primates.A number of factors have contributed to this relatively slow progress.Under captive conditions such as those typically found in research laboratories,most primate species are not as vocal as they are in the wild,especially for species with large body sizes.The common marmoset(Callithrix jacchus),a small-bodied New World primate species,has emerged in recent years as a promising model system for studying neural basis of social communication.Marmosets have several advantages over other non-human primate species.They are highly social and have a rich repertoire of communication calls.Anatomically,the marmoset has a smooth brain that provides easy access to many regions of the cerebral cortex,thereby making it ideal for electrophysiological and optical recordings.Marmosets hearing range overlaps with that of humans.They are easily bred in captivity and have a high reproductive rate,making it feasible to conduct transgenic and developmental studies of its behaviors and underlying neural mechanisms.My laboratory has developed a number of techniques to study auditory and vocal behaviors and brain functions of this unique non-human primate species.