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Hearing Health Foundation (HHF) is grateful to Royal Arch Research Assistance (RARA) for their most generous support of Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) research as part of our Emerging Research Grants (ERG) program. 

Researchers funded by RARA have made tremendous strides toward a better understanding of CAPD, as well as developing treatments and therapies that can benefit anyone affected by the disorder, from children to the elderly.

Many RARA-supported HHF grantees have gone on to receive awards from the following federal institutions:

  • NIH (National Institutes of Health) including the NIDCD (National Institutes on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders), the NINDS (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke), and the NIGMS (National Institute of General Medical Sciences)

  • NSF (National Science Foundation)

  • CDMRP (Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs)

  • DoD (Department of Defense)

  • VA (Veterans Administration)

We are grateful for your investment and trust in our rigorous grant review process. We look forward to continuing our relationship and furthering CAPD research for years to come. Follow the links at right to learn about RARA grantees' projects and accomplishments by year.


FIRST YEAR

Ben-Zheng Li, Ph.D., University of Colorado

Research Topic: Alterations in the sound localization pathway resulting in hearing deficits: an optogenetic approach

Long-Term Goal: To contribute to the development of innovative therapeutic strategies aimed at restoring spatial hearing in individuals with hearing impairments, including those with autism and age-related hearing deficits.

Published Research

 

Anahita Mehta, Ph.D., University of Michigan

Research Topic: Effects of age on interactions of acoustic features with timing judgments in auditory sequences

Long-Term Goal: To advance our understanding of auditory feature integration and its implications for temporal perception, particularly regarding aging and hearing loss.

Published Research

 

SECOND YEAR

Amanda Griffin, Ph.D., Au.D., Boston Children’s Hospital (see 2024 Grantees)

HiJee Kang, Ph.D., Johns Hopkins University (see 2024 Grantees)

FIRST YEAR

Amanda Griffin, Ph.D., Au.D., Boston Children’s Hospital

Research Topic: Toward better assessment of pediatric unilateral hearing loss

Long-Term Goal: To enhance basic understanding of auditory and non-auditory function in children with untreated and treated single-sided deafness in order to build evidence-based clinical guidelines for the management of children with single-sided deafness.

 

HiJee Kang, Ph.D., Johns Hopkins University

Research Topic: Age-related changes on neural mechanisms in the auditory cortex for learning complex sounds

Long-Term Goal: To apply insights from neural dynamics observed in animal models to enhance our understanding of human auditory processing, particularly in the context of aging in order to further development of clinical prostheses that will improve the quality of life for those experiencing age-related hearing challenges.

Published Research

 

SECOND YEAR

Carolyn McClaskey, Ph.D., Medical University of South Carolina (see 2023 Grantees)

Melissa Polonenko, Ph.D., University of Minnesota–Twin Cities (see 2023 Grantees)

FIRST YEAR

Carolyn McClaskey PhD

Carolyn McClaskey, Ph.D., Medical University of South Carolina

Research Topic: Age and hearing loss effects on subcortical envelope encoding

Long-Term Goal: To better understand how age and age-related hearing loss alter the neural signaling of the auditory system (specifically the auditory midbrain) and negatively impact speech communication, so that we can work toward developing effective clinical interventions and improving communication for older adults and adults with age-related hearing loss.

NIH & Other Major Federal Funding: $185,690

 
Melissa Polonenko PhD

Melissa Polonenko, Ph.D., University of Minnesota–Twin Cities

Research Topic: Identifying hearing loss through neural responses to engaging stories

Long-Term Goal: To develop an engaging, objective clinical test that uses stories to identify hearing loss in young children and evaluate changes to their responses to the same speech through hearing aids.

Published Research

 

SECOND YEAR

Manoj Kumar, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh (see 2022 Grantees)

Z. Ellen Peng, Ph.D., Boys Town National Research Hospital (see 2020 Grantees)

Manoj Kumar PhD

Manoj Kumar, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh

Research Topic: Signaling mechanisms of auditory cortex plasticity after noise-induced hearing loss

Long-Term Goal: To identify the molecular and cellular therapeutic targets for treating and rehabilitating the impaired hearing associated with tinnitus and hyperacusis.

Published Research

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Z. Ellen Peng, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison

Research Topic: Investigating cortical processing during comprehension of reverberant speech in adolescents and young adults with cochlear implants

Long-Term Goal: To understand the impact of profound childhood hearing loss treated by cochlear implants on both behavioral outcomes and neural mechanisms involved in understanding speech in adverse auditory environments. This work will add to our knowledge in developing personalized clinical device fitting strategies for children with hearing loss to enhance communication and learning in realistic indoor environments.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Funding: $405,100

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Kristi Hendrickson, Ph.D., University of Iowa

Research Topic: Neural correlates of semantic structure in children who are hard of hearing

Long-Term Goal: To identify key factors that influence language outcomes in children who are hard of hearing.

Published Research

 
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Hao Luo, M.D., Ph.D., Wayne State University

Research Topic: Cochlear electrical stimulation–induced tinnitus suppression and related neural activity change in the rat inferior colliculus

Long-Term Goal: To find the underlying mechanism by which CES alters neural activity to effect changes in auditory symptoms and perceptions and to develop an optimal strategy to improve clinical trials in this area.

Published Research

 
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Vijaya Prakash Krishnan Muthaiah, Ph.D., University at Buffalo, the State University of New York

Research Topic: Potential of inhibition of poly ADP-ribose polymerase as a therapeutic approach in blast-induced cochlear and brain injury

Long-Term Goal: To determine the mechanisms underlying both the peripheral and central aspects of blast-induced auditory neurodegeneration; and to identify and characterize potential therapeutic targets for manifestations of blast-induced traumatic brain injury, including hearing loss, cochlear synaptopathy, tinnitus, and associated deficits.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding

  • Behavioral evidence of tinnitus and its correlation with ABR wave metrics in chinchilla induced by blast injury. Funded by the Department of Defense, Department of the Army–Army Research Office, 2020, amount undisclosed.

 
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William “Jason” Riggs, Au.D., The Ohio State University

Research Topic: Electrophysiological characteristics in children with auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder

Long-Term Goal: To use objective techniques to further target and investigate physiologic properties of the auditory system, which can be used to better understand the underlying lesion/impairment; and to improve clinical cochlear implant mapping strategies for children with ANSD through the information gleaned from objective electrophysiologic testing.

Published Research

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Alisha Lambeth Jones, Au.D., Ph.D., Auburn University 

Research topic: Evaluating central auditory processing (CAP), language, and cognition skills in adolescents born prematurely

Long-Term Goal: To identify patterns of deficits in auditory processing, language, and cognition skills for both children and adolescents with a premature birth history. Once patterns of deficits are identified, early intervention treatment as well as a rehabilitation program will be developed to either prevent or treat the deficit areas.

Published Research

 
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Elliott Kozin, M.D., Mass. Eye and Ear, Harvard University

Research Topic: Evaluation of hearing loss and quality of life in patients with mild traumatic brain injury

Long-Term Goal: To better diagnose and treat patients with auditory dysfunction following head injury, thereby minimizing hearing loss, tinnitus, and hyperacusis. The study has implications for a broad range of individuals, including those with isolated head injuries as well as those with repetitive head injuries, such as athletes and military personnel.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Funding: $819,980

 
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Khaleel Razak, Ph.D., University of California, Riverside

Research Topic: Age-related hearing loss and cortical processing

Long-Term Goal: To systematically examine the optimal combination of hearing aids and behavioral and pharmacological approaches to delay or prevent the declines in complex sound processing seen in presbycusis. 

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Funding: $1,822,806

 
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Joseph Toscano, Ph.D., Villanova University

Research Topic: Cortical EEG measure of speech sound encoding for hearing assessment

Long-Term Goal: To develop a clinical test for identifying auditory neuropathy and other types of hearing loss that can be used for both adults and children. 

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $605,267

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Joseph Bochner, Ph.D., Rochester Institute of Technology

Research Topic: Auditory Experience, Critical Periods, and the Development of Categorical Perception in Cochlear Implant Users: A Preliminary Investigation

Long-Term Goal: To understand the impact of sensorineural (peripheral) hearing loss may extend to central auditory processing when the onset of hearing loss occurs at birth or within the first two to three years of life.

Published Research

 
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Angela Yarnell Bonino, Ph.D., CCC-A., The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Research Topic: Toddlers’ and preschoolers’ ability to hear speech in noise: Assessing performance with a two-interval, observer-based procedure


Long-Term Goal To examine toddlers’ and preschoolers’ auditory functioning with stimuli that are believed to be highly related to speech and language abilities.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $536,398

 
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Inyong Choi, Ph.D., University of Iowa

Research Topic: Neural correlates of selective listening deficits in a multiple-speaker environment

Long-Term Goal: To develop clinical tests to identify specific hearing deficits that are currently undiagnosed and raise awareness of such “hidden” hearing loss.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $1,888,532

 
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Christina Reuterskiöld, Ph.D., New York University

Research Topic: Rhyme Awareness in Children with Cochlear Implants: Investigating the Effect of a Degraded Auditory System on Auditory Processing, Language, and Literacy Development

Long-Term Goal: To better understand the implications of early auditory deprivation on auditory processing, language, and literacy learning in children, which will ultimately lead to improvements in targeted intervention and educational approaches for these children.

Published Research

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Richard A. Felix II, Ph.D., Washington State University

Research Topic: Neural mechanisms underlying deficits encoding temporal sound features associated with central auditory processing disorder

Long-Term Goal: To gain a thorough understanding of the neural mechanisms that govern the temporal processing of speech. This work has the potential to impact those with hearing loss by providing vital information needed for treatments designed to ameliorate listening problems associated with CAPD.

Published Research

 
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Nathan Higgins, Ph.D., Vanderbilt University

Research Topic: Biomarkers of spatial processing in auditory cortex measured with functional near-infrared spectroscopy

Long-Term Goal: To establish consistent biomarkers for central auditory processing, and determine the utility of fNIRS for a variety of patient populations by quantifying the influence of task-related attention on cortical activity.

Published Research

 
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Elizabeth McCullagh, Ph.D., University of Colorado

Research Topic: The role of the MNTB in sound localization impairments in autism spectrum disorder and CAPD

Long-Term Goal: To verify a theory that autism may be caused by an imbalance of excitatory and inhibitory synapses, particularly in sensory systems, which would lead to a decreased ability to separate competing sound sources.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Funding: $3,724,618

 
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Nirmal Kumar Srinivasan, Ph.D., Towson University

Research Topic: Understanding and decoding CAPD in adults

Long-Term Goal: To better understand the difficulties encountered by listeners with CAPD in complex listening environment.

Published Research

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Hari Bharadwaj, Ph.D., Massachusetts General Hospital

Research Topic: A systems approach to characterization of subcortical and cortical contributions to temporal processing deficits in CAPD

Long-Term Goal: To understand the physiological mechanisms that allow us to listen and communicate in noisy settings, thereby illuminating why different groups of individuals have difficulty in such settings, and to leverage this understanding to develop noninvasive objective tools that can be used in the diagnosis and stratification (“subtyping”) of a diverse yet overlapping set of communication disorders.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $1,632,361

 
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Andrew Dimitrijevic, Ph.D., Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center

Research Topic: Sensory and Cognitive Processing in Children with Auditory Processing Disorders: Behavior and Electrophysiology

Long-Term Goal: To address whether there are subtypes of CAPD arising from deficits of bottom-up or top-down processing. Bottom-up processing refers to how the sound signal is encoded up to the level of the brain (i.e., ear to auditory nerve through the brainstem and up to the brain). Top-down processing is what the brain does with that information and includes cognition and attention. Understanding the mechanism of the CAPD will help direct clinicians as to what intervention may be most appropriate.

Published Research

 
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Beula Magimairaj, Ph.D., CCC-SLP., University of Central Arkansas

Research Topic: Moving the science forward through interdisciplinary collaborative research integrating hearing, language, and cognitive science

Long-Term Goal: To develop a sensitive and valid test that can serve as a front-end differential screening tool for children suspected to have CAPD. Such an assessment tool will be able to reliably characterize auditory processing and attention, language, and memory deficits that are known to coexist in some children diagnosed with CAPD.

Published Research

 
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Kenneth Vaden, Medical University of South Carolina

Research Topic: Adaptive control of auditory representations in listeners with central auditory processing disorder

Long-Term Goal: To develop methods to assess the quality of speech representations based on brain activity and characterize top-down control systems that interact with the auditory cortex. The results of this study will improve the understanding of a specific top-down control mechanism and examine when and how adaptive control enhances speech recognition for people with CAPD.

Published Research

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Samira Anderson, Au.D., Ph.D., University of Maryland

Research Topic: Neural adaptation in new hearing aid users

Long-Term Goal: To improve the hearing aid fitting process through assessment of the brain’s sound processing and to determine how this processing changes with hearing aid use over the course of six months.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $435,702

 
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Srikanta Mishra, Ph.D, New Mexico State University

Research Topic: Medial Efferent Mechanisms in Auditory Processing Disorders

Long-Term Goal: To understand the role efferent mechanisms in auditory processing, learning and disability. The translational goal is to develop mechanism-based and physiological tests for assessing auditory processing.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $1,973,222

 
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Daniel Winkowski, Ph.D., University of Maryland

Research Topic: Noise trauma induced reorganization of the auditory cortex

Long-Term Goal: To understand tinnitus at the level of neural circuits (auditory processing). Our approach offers a rather unique opportunity to sample activity within large-scale representations and local populations of neurons and, in turn, will reveal precisely how A1 micro-circuits are affected by traumatic insult to peripheral sensory organs. Thus, I intend on using this approach to build a more comprehensive understanding of how cortical micro-circuits change as a result of noise trauma.

Published Research

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Alan Kan, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison

Research Topic: Exploiting the “better ear” in bilateral cochlear implants for improved speech understanding in noisy situations and Auditory Processing.

Dr. Kan was also funded for his research in 2014.

Long-Term Goal: To close the gap in speech understanding performance between cochlear implant users and normal hearing listeners. The primary outcome of this study will help determine whether the “better ear” strategy will provide a significant benefit for cochlear implant users, and whether this strategy for listening is desirable.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $459,000

 
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Ross Maddox, Ph.D., University of Washington

Research Topic: Relating behavior to brain in an audio-visual scene

Long-Term Goal: To investigate the specific behavioral effects of audio-visual binding and its processing in the brain.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Funding: $3,494,971

 
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Merri J. Rosen, Ph.D., Northeast Ohio Medical University

Research Topic: Effects of developmental conductive hearing loss on communication processing

Long-Term Goal: Effects of developmental conductive hearing loss on communication processing: perceptual deficits and neural correlates in an animal model.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Funding: $3,681,339

 

SECOND YEAR

Bradley G. Cooper, Ph.D., Texas Christian University (see 2011 Grantees)

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Yoojin Chung, Ph.D., Mass. Eye and Ear, Harvard University

Research Topic: Restoring binaural hearing with cochlear implants in early-onset deafness

Long-Term Goal: To improve treatments for children with early-onset deafness by studying how neural mechanisms for binaural processing are altered by auditory deprivation during development and whether these effects can be reversed by CI stimulation.

Published Research

 
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Elizabeth Dinces, M.D., M.S., Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Research Topic: Effects of aging on selective attention in complex, multisource sound environments

Long-Term Goal: To explain mechanisms of auditory scene analysis that break down in aging.

Published Research

 
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Kirill Vadimovich Nourski, M.D., Ph.D., University of Iowa

Research Topic: Temporal Processing in the Human Auditory Cortex

Long-Term Goal: To better understand how the different areas that comprise the auditory cortex in humans are organized and what specific roles they play in processing information about sounds, particularly, as it relates to perception of speech. Ultimately, this knowledge will contribute to finding new and/or improved solutions for people with hearing loss and auditory processing disorders.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $2,924,474

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Edward L. Bartlett, Ph.D., Purdue University

Research Topic: Cellular bases of temporal auditory processing

Long-Term Goal: To predict and redevelop the cellular dynamics that underlie in vivo responses of auditory thalamic and auditory cortical neurons in normal and pathological conditions, including age-related decline, dyslexia, and aberrant auditory experience during development.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $2,050,935

 
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Brenton G. Cooper, Ph.D., Texas Christian University

Research Topic: Lateralization of acoustic perception in Bengalese finches

Long-Term Goal: To develop an animal model for testing and refining treatments for hearing loss and lateralized frequency processing deficits in humans, including CAPD.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $3,446,873

 
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Zhengqing Hu, M.D., Ph.D., Wayne State University School of Medicine

Research Topic: Innervation of in vitro-produced hair cell by neural progenitor-derived glutamatergic neurons
 

Long-Term Goal: To develop effective strategies to regenerate auditory pathways using stem cell-based approaches to restore hearing. If successful, the research will then explore whether stem cell-derived cells can be used to regenerate auditory cells damaged in CAPD.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $3,008,170

 
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Erin K. Purcell, Ph.D., University of Michigan

Research Topic: A stem cell-seeded nanofibrous scaffold for auditory nerve regeneration

Long-Term Goal: To regenerate auditory nerves and understand the conditions that promote neural connections with the auditory brainstem, in order to ultimately restore hearing for patients with neural hearing loss and find for therapies for individuals with CAPD.

Published Research

NIH & Other Major Federal Research Funding: $3,185,243

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