Biology subjects

Colon-Rivera, N.

Publications and source records attributed to Colon-Rivera, N..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Sociality Drives Sex Differences in Auditory Brainstem Processing Across Rodent Species

Although social behavior has been predicted to correlate with increased complexity in vocal signals, its relationship with auditory sensitivity between the sexes remains poorly understood. Here, we used phylogenetic comparative analyses to examine sex-specific differences in auditory processing across rodent species representing different social lifestyle strategies. We detected significant sex differences in click and frequency evoked auditory brainstem response (ABR) thresholds across sociality, with social female rodents exhibiting lower thresholds than solitary males. Males generally exhibited higher ABR wave I and IV amplitude ratios than females, whereas interpeak latencies were similar between the sexes across social groups. Females exhibited significantly higher binaural interaction component (BIC) relative amplitudes and faster BIC normalized latencies than males across tested interaural time differences (ITDs). Together, these findings demonstrate that sociality plays an important role in shaping differences in auditory physiology between male and female rodents and highlights the potential influence of social behavior on the evolution of mammalian auditory systems.

physiology↗

bioRxiv2025

Differences in Auditory Brainstem Responses between Laboratory-reared and Wild-caught Prairie Voles (Microtus ochrogaster)

Prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) are a semi-fossorial rodent that are an emerging model in social neuroscience. Comparing laboratory-reared and wild-caught individuals is essential for understanding how environmental history shapes neural and sensory traits and for assessing the ecological validity of laboratory findings. Despite this, relatively few studies have taken this approach. We used auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) to compare ABR thresholds and ABR wave characteristics between laboratory-reared and wild-caught prairie voles. ABR recordings show that, similar to other semi-fossorial rodents, M. ochrogaster exhibit a hearing range of 1 - 46 kHz with peak sensitivity around 8 to 32 kHz. However, wild-caught prairie voles displayed significantly lower ABR thresholds at 1, 4, 8, 16, and 24 kHz compared to laboratory-reared prairie voles. There were significant differences in interpeak latency between both tested groups, with laboratory-reared prairie voles showing faster interpeak latency responses than wild-caught voles. However, there were no differences in amplitude ratios between groups. Laboratory-reared prairie voles showed faster normalized latencies and higher relative amplitude of the binaural interaction component (BIC) of the ABR than wild-caught voles. There were no significant differences in ABR thresholds, interpeak latency, amplitude ratio, normalized latency, and relative amplitude between the sexes. These differences in auditory processing support the importance of integrating both wild and captive populations to advance comparative auditory research. SUMMARY STATEMENTWild and laboratory-reared prairie voles show distinct auditory processing, highlighting how environment history shapes hearing and underscoring the need for comparative studies.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

Sex Differences in Auditory Brainstem Responses in the Hispid Pocket Mouse (Chaetodipus hispidus)

The hispid pocket mouse (C. hispidus) is a solitary semi-fossorial rodent that has been the subject of various ecological and genetic studies. However, no previous studies have characterized its hearing ability, which is important for its survival and fitness. We collected auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) from C. hispidus and measured craniofacial and pinna morphological features to assess hearing ability and test differences in hearing thresholds, monaural and binaural ABR amplitudes and latencies between the sexes. ABR recordings revealed that similar to other small mammals, C. hispidus displayed the lowest threshold to sounds between 8-16 kHz, indicating best hearing across those frequencies. We found significant differences in auditory thresholds of the ABRs between the sexes, with females showing lower frequency hearing compared to males. However, no significant differences were detected in monaural and binaural ABR amplitudes and latencies between the sexes. We also found no significant differences in craniofacial and pinna dimensions between the sexes. These findings shed novel insights into the auditory systems across species and highlighted for the first time sex differences in auditory thresholds for this rodent species.

neuroscience↗