Predator odor modulates auditory event-related potentials in mice

Abstract

Animals process information from different sensory modalities, requiring integration of signals and assignment of significance. People with schizophrenia perceive sensory information without external stimuli (hallucinations) and attribute meaning to coincidental events (referential delusions), suggesting deficits in sensory integration. We investigate sensory integration deficits by measuring the impact of olfactory cues on auditory processing in a mouse model of schizophrenia. N-methyl-D-aspartate-NR1 knockdown and wild-type mice were exposed to predator odor during auditory event-related potentials. Both groups reduced N1 event-related potential amplitude in the presence of predator odor, indicating that mice appropriately integrate olfactory and auditory stimuli. NR1 knockdown mice do not have deficits in this task, suggesting that sensory integration may rely on non-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor mediated circuits.