Research conducted by Kamini Sehrawat and Prof. Israel Nelken from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has unveiled significant insights into how early auditory experiences shape sensory preferences in male and female mice. Their study, published in Cell Reports, highlights striking differences in how male and female mice respond to sound exposure, particularly to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9.
The researchers aimed to explore a pressing question in neuroscience: how do early experiences influence sensory processing, and do these effects vary between sexes? By exposing baby mice to the first movement of Beethoven’s symphony, they created a controlled environment to assess the impact of sound on behavior and brain function.
Early exposure to sound or silence produced lasting effects on the mice’s behavior and brain development. The study revealed that male mice exhibited a pronounced aversion to novel sound environments. Those raised in silence or artificial sound settings tended to avoid music as adults. Interestingly, male mice that grew up listening to Beethoven displayed a wider range of musical preferences, with many showing an inclination towards music.
In contrast, female mice demonstrated a different response to early auditory experiences. Their preferences appeared less influenced by the sounds they encountered during development. Notably, increased neural activity in the auditory cortex of female mice correlated with a reduced appreciation for music. This relationship stood in stark contrast to male mice, where no significant connection between auditory cortex response and behavior was observed.
“These results suggest that early sound exposure affects males and females in fundamentally different ways,” said Sehrawat, who led the experiments. “What looks like the same experience on the surface may trigger completely different neural adaptations in each sex.”
Prof. Nelken emphasized the broader implications of their findings, stating, “Our findings in mice intriguingly suggest that sound preferences rely on mechanisms that operate differently in males and females. Understanding those differences could shed light on how early sensory experiences shape emotional and cognitive development.”
The choice of Beethoven was not merely aesthetic; it served as a structured, multi-frequency soundscape that engaged a significant portion of the mice’s auditory range. The study’s outcomes resonate beyond the confines of the laboratory, indicating that the same auditory stimuli may elicit diverse responses based on the listener’s sex.
This research opens new avenues for understanding the complex interplay between early sensory experiences and their long-term effects on behavior and brain function. The findings could have implications for future studies on sensory development and gender differences in various species.
For further details, refer to the study by Kamini Sehrawat et al., titled “Sound preferences in mice are sex dependent,” published in Cell Reports in 2025 (DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2025.116454).
