Xiping Zhan, Ph.D.

Meet the Researcher

Dr. Zhan obtained his Ph.D. in the College of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 1999.

He completed his postdoctoral work on the function of the cochlear nucleus granule cell domain at Johns Hopkins University (2006), and tinnitus modulation at Georgetown University (2009). In 2014, he became a research assistant professor in the Department of Physiology, College of Medicine at Howard University, Washington, DC.

Dr. Zhan's grant is funded by the Les Paul Foundation.

The Research

Howard University
Dopaminergic activity in modulation of noise-induced tinnitus

Tinnitus is a major challenge for public health because it is a condition that is associated with hearing loss and can contribute to debilitating emotional stress, anxiety, and mental fatigue. Dr. Zhan’s interest is focused on the mechanisms that generate tinnitus and modulate tinnitus associated anxiety and depression using an animal model. His studies focus on dopaminergic activity in the limbic midbrain. Dopamine and its receptors play an important role in human mood behavior. Recently, dopamine has been suggested to be involved in tinnitus. Dr. Zhan’s research is designed to find out how dopamine neurons are communicating with other neurons to contribute to tinnitus generation. In addition, he also investigates how the functions of dopamine cells are modified during the development of tinnitus following noise exposures. These studies will shed light on the cellular mechanisms of tinnitus and offer a novel avenue for drug therapy.

Research Area: Tinnitus and associated distress

Long-term goal: Tinnitus is a common disease stemming from plastic changes or synaptic reorganization often caused by hearing loss, acoustic trauma and ototoxic drugs. This disorder is associated with distress and depression. The limbic circuits are implicated to be involved, but it is still elusive how a specific pathway is involved. Therefore, the long-term goals of this research are to decipher the underpinnings for tinnitus and associated mental disorders with emphasis on the dopaminergic pathways and functions.

In summary, we will be able elucidate new knowledge about the role of dopaminergic activity in tinnitus and associated distress. This will guide us to establish a protocol by taking advantage of psychiatric drugs, such as dopaminergic active drugs, to alleviate the symptoms caused by tinnitus and the associated distress. It may also help us to develop novel drugs and manage tinnitus with more effective intervention. Further more, it may help physicians to formulate new guidelines for tinnitus suffers to manage negative emotions caused by tinnitus.