Synaptic Mechanisms in the Auditory System will provide a basic reference for students, clinicians, and researchers on how synapses in the auditory system function to encode acoustic signals. These mechanisms are the groundwork for all auditory processing, and understanding them requires knowledge of the microphysiology of synapses, cellular biophysics, receptor pharmacology, and an appreciation for what these synapses must do for a living, what unique jobs they carry out.

Introduction and overview.- Neuronal response properties and voltage-gated ion channels.- The hair cell synapse.- The endbulbs of Held.-  The calyces of Held.- Synaptic coincidence detection.- Synaptic inhibition in the auditory system.- Modulatory mechanisms for controlling auditory processing.- Long-term plasticity in the auditory system.