Transcriptomic Signatures of Music Perception in the Human Cortex

Music perception engages distributed cortical networks responsible for auditory processing, emotional integration, and higher-order cognition. While neuroimaging studies have extensively characterized the functional architecture underlying music perception, its molecular correlates remain incompletely understood. In this study, we applied a bioinformatic framework to investigate transcriptomic signatures associated with music-related cortical regions in the human brain. Publicly available human cortical gene expression datasets were analyzed to compare music-relevant regions, including the primary auditory cortex, superior temporal gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, with reference cortical areas. Differential expression analysis identified a subset of significantly upregulated genes enriched for synaptic signaling, calcium ion transport, neurotransmitter secretion, and regulation of membrane potential. Functional enrichment and pathway analyses further revealed overrepresentation of processes related to synaptic plasticity, postsynaptic density organization, calcium signaling pathways, and long-term potentiation. Protein–protein interaction network analysis demonstrated a densely interconnected module of synaptic genes, with hub genes centrally involved in glutamatergic transmission and voltage-gated calcium channel activity. Collectively, these findings indicate that music-related cortical regions exhibit distinct transcriptomic profiles characterized by coordinated gene networks supporting neuronal excitability and activity-dependent plasticity. This integrative transcriptomic analysis provides a molecular-level perspective complementing systems neuroscience models of music perception and establishes a bioinformatic framework for future investigations into the biological basis of complex auditory cognition.