Divergence in the functional organization of human and macaque auditory cortex revealed by fMRI responses to harmonic tones

We report a difference between humans and macaque monkeys in the functional organization of cortical regions implicated in pitch perception. Humans but not macaques showed regions with a strong preference for harmonic sounds compared to noise, measured with both synthetic tones and macaque vocalizations. In contrast, frequency-selective tonotopic maps were similar between the two species. This species difference may be driven by the unique demands of speech and music perception in humans.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant EY13455)National Science Foundation (U.S.). Science and Technology Center for Brains, Minds, and Machines (Grant CCF-1231216)Massachusetts General Hospital. Center for Functional Neuroimaging Technologies (Grant P41EB015896)National Institutes of Health (U.S.). Shared Instrumentation Grant Program (Grant S10RR021110