The Effects of Reversible Hearing Loss on the Development of Auditory Perception and Neural Coding

可逆性听力损失对听觉感知和神经编码发育的影响

基本信息

批准号：
9241997
负责人：
Melissa Lynne Caras
金额：
$ 2.84万
依托单位：
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
财政年份：
2015
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2015-03-16 至 2017-08-31
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9241997
关键词：
Address Adult Age Animal Communication Animals Auditory Auditory Brainstem Responses Auditory Perception Auditory area Behavior Behavioral Bilateral Child Childhood Chronic Cochlea Code Cognitive Communication Comprehension Cues Detection Development Earplug Electrodes Excision External auditory canal Frequencies Functional disorder Goals Hearing Human Impairment Implant Implanted Electrodes Laboratory Study Language Delays Left Measurement Measures Mediating Mission Monitor National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders Neuraxis Otitis Media Perception Performance Peripheral Preparation Process Psychometrics Recording of previous events Recovery Reporting Risk Sensory Speech Speech Delay Stimulus Telemetry Testing Time Training Treatment Efficacy Wireless Technology attenuation auditory deprivation auditory pathway auditory processing aversive conditioning awake base behavioral impairment comparison group critical developmental period critical period deprivation design experimental study falls hearing impairment improved language impairment language processing neuromechanism postnatal public health relevance relating to nervous system response restoration sensory input sound speech processing treatment group

项目摘要

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Childhood hearing loss disrupts central processing of spectral and temporal cues, and may contribute to perceptual deficits, including impaired speech and language processing. Though difficulties can persist even after normal auditory input is restored, earlier restoration is correlated with superior recovery. These findings suggest that there is a critical period of development during which the neural mechanisms subserving auditory processing are particularly vulnerable to sensory perturbations. The key goal of this proposal is to determine whether a brief period of developmental hearing loss disrupts the neural and perceptual detection of amplitude modulation (AM), a temporal cue necessary for speech comprehension and non-human animal communication. The core hypothesis is that transient hearing loss during a critical period disrupts the neural encoding of AM stimuli, thereby producing a perceptual impairment that persists after normal peripheral function is restored. This hypothesis will be explored in detail, with two experimental aims. Specific Aim 1 will determine whether there is a critical period during which temporary hearing loss impairs subsequent AM detection. Sound attenuation will be induced by the insertion of bilateral earplugs at various postnatal ages. After a period of restored auditory input (via earplug removal), animals will be trained and tested on an aversive conditioning paradigm designed to assess amplitude modulation detection capabilities. Behavioral performance will be quantified by calculating correct responses and false alarms. Detection thresholds will be estimated from psychometric functions and compared between earplug-reared animals and normally-reared littermates. These measures will reveal whether there is a critical period during which the maturation of AM detection is sensitive to hearing loss. Specific Aim 2 will examine the impact of temporary, developmental hearing loss on central sensory encoding in auditory cortex of awake-behaving animals performing the AM detection task described in Aim 1. Multi- and single-unit responses will be recorded wirelessly from chronically implanted electrode arrays in left auditory cortex. AM-evoked firing rates and power will be calculated and used to calculate neurometric curves that can be directly compared to behavioral psychometric functions. Additional analyses will assess the relationship between behavior and neural activity on trial-by-trial basis. Results will be compared between earplug-reared and normally-reared animals. The results of this experiment will elucidate whether behavioral deficits arising from developmental hearing loss can be explained by disrupted sensory coding, as is generally assumed, or whether non-sensory (e.g. cognitive) factors contribute to perceptual dysfunction. Together, these findings will reveal whether there is a discrete developmental critical period for the neural representation and perceptual detection of AM. Ultimately, these results may further our understanding of speech and language delays associated with childhood hearing loss, a goal directly relevant to the mission of NIDCD.

描述（由申请人提供）：儿童听力损失会扰乱频谱和时间线索的中央处理，并可能导致知觉缺陷，包括言语和语言处理受损。尽管即使在恢复正常听觉输入后困难仍然存在，但早期恢复与相关。这些研究结果表明。发育有一个关键时期，在此期间，支持听觉处理的神经机制特别容易受到感觉干扰。该提案的主要目标是确定短暂的发育性听力损失是否会扰乱幅度调制的神经和感知检测。 AM），语音理解和非人类动物交流所必需的时间线索，核心假设是关键时期的短暂听力损失会破坏 AM 刺激的神经编码，从而破坏 AM 刺激的神经编码。我们将详细探讨这一假设，具体目标 1 将确定是否存在一个关键时期，在此期间暂时性听力损失会损害随后的 AM 检测。通过在不同出生后年龄插入双侧耳塞来诱导听觉输入恢复一段时间（通过耳塞移除），将在旨在评估幅度调制检测能力的厌恶性条件反射范式上进行训练和测试。通过计算正确反应和误报来量化检测阈值，并通过耳塞饲养的动物和正常饲养的同窝动物之间的比较来估计检测阈值，这些措施将揭示是否存在 AM 检测的成熟敏感的关键时期。具体目标 2 将检查暂时性发育性听力损失对执行目标 1 中描述的 AM 检测任务的清醒动物听觉皮层中枢感觉编码的影响。多单元和单单元响应将被无线记录。来自左听觉皮层长期植入的电极阵列将被计算并用于计算可直接与行为心理测量功能进行比较的神经测量曲线。将通过试验对耳塞饲养的动物和正常饲养的动物进行比较，该实验的结果将阐明发育性听力损失引起的行为缺陷是否可以通过通常认为的感觉编码破坏来解释。非感觉（例如认知）因素会导致知觉功能障碍，这些发现将揭示神经表征是否存在离散的发育关键期。最终，这些结果可能会进一步加深我们对与儿童听力损失相关的言语和语言发育迟缓的理解，这一目标与 NIDCD 的使命直接相关。