Beta (∼16 Hz) frequency neural oscillations mediate auditory sensory gating in humans

The brain's oscillatory activities in response to sensory input are likely signals representing different stages of sensory information processing. To understand these signals, it is critical to establish the specificity of the timing and frequency of oscillations associated with sensory and sensory-related cognitive processing. We used a simple paired auditory stimulus paradigm for sensory gating and sought to identify time- and frequency-specific oscillatory components contributing to sensory gating. Using a discrete wavelet decomposition technique we separated single-trial time-frequency components of evoked potentials elicited by the first of two stimuli. Regression analyses were then used to identify the components most relevant to the suppression of the second evoked potential response. The results suggested that beta oscillation indexed a neural process associated with the strength of sensory gating.