Your generous support produced significant achievements this past year.
Nicotine Injections Reduce Age-Related Auditory Processing Changes in the Older Mouse Brain
This data in aging mice strongly suggests that topical or oral nicotine or nicotine-like substances may be profoundly beneficial for aging humans with central auditory processing disruptions.
Molecular Barriers to Overcome for Hair Cell Regeneration in the Adult Mouse Cochlea
The research suggests that reprogramming with multiple transcription factors is better able to access the hair cell differentiation gene regulatory network, but that additional interventions may be necessary to produce mature and fully functional hair cells.
Cut Dementia Risk by Testing for and Then Treating Hearing Loss
The use of hearing aids or cochlear implants was “associated with a 19 percent decrease in hazards of long-term cognitive decline such as incident dementia over a duration ranging from 2 to 25 years,” JAMA Neurology says.
Cell-Type Identity of the Chick Balance Organ
We have now identified the first events that lead to proliferative hair cell regeneration in birds, which provides new leads that can be translated to mice and ultimately to humans.
Apparent Benefits of Cochlear Implantation Before Age 2
These findings are important because they provide valuable insight into the interaction between the learner’s age (developmental period effect) and their linguistic experience (quality and quantity of linguistic input) in early development.
A Scientist Steps Up to Serve
Vijaya Prakash Krishnan Muthaiah, PT, Ph.D., works with members of the military as part of his research. This inspired him to join the U.S. Coast Guard as a reservist. We cannot think of a more meaningful way to show dedication to the service our military provides.
The Gene TMPRSS3 and Me
A teen learns about the genetic cause of her hearing loss, and is spreading the word to find out more.
How Can We Measure Hearing Aid Success in the Youngest Patients?
We found that the use of neural responses to sound to infer how well hearing aids—a common first form of intervention—provide access to speech is similar in children to that found in adults.
Balance Control in People With Hearing or Vestibular Loss in One Ear
Patients with hearing loss in one ear appear to have more conscious control over their response to sensory cues in their environment, resulting in a more deliberate control of balance with less degrees of freedom to respond to changes in the environment, almost like a guarding behavior.