Development of medial efferent mechanisms in children.

项目摘要/摘要 (家长R01) 传出反馈--外围声音编码的一个标志--在 听觉发育和可塑性，并提供了一种潜在的机制，使 噪声诱发的耳蜗性突触和阈值上的知觉缺陷。然而， 我们对人类传出机制如何发展的了解极其有限。这个 本研究的主要目的是了解内侧传出神经的发育。 人类的机制及其在听觉发育中的作用。的目标是 建议的项目是系统地调查时间的发展 传出效应的特点。我们的中心假设是儿童表现出发育 脑干发育可塑性引起的传出效应的变化。我们的 理论基础是，对传出神经如何工作和发展的详细了解将导致更好的 了解传出神经在听觉发育和知觉缺陷中的作用。 拟议的项目有两个具体目标：1)确定 对时间波动的传出敏感性；以及2)确定发育 传出效应的时间动态变化。拟议的工作是概念上的 创新是因为它将提供关于鲜为人知的发展的信息 儿童传出效应的几个方面。该方法涉及令人信服的组合 利用先进的信号处理(时频)进行扫频声发射测量 分析)技术。拟议的研究将提供重要的新知识 关于传出如何在人类中发展，并对(1)的理解有影响 传出神经在听阈上的参与，(2)听觉理论的形成 开发，(3)开发基于OAE的传出功能预测测试 对噪声性听力损失的敏感性，(4)构建准确的听觉模型， (5)设计改进的助听器算法。首席调查员是 在当前环境下进行这类研究的经验。总体而言， 提出的项目将对我们对人类的理解产生持续的影响 传出系统及其发展，以及在儿科听力学领域。

PROJECT SUMMARY/ ABSTRACT (parent R01) Efferent feedback—a hallmark of peripheral sound coding—plays a critical role in auditory development and plasticity and offers a potential mechanism for minimizing noise-induced cochlear synaptopathy and supra-threshold perceptual deficits. However, our knowledge of how efferent mechanisms develop in humans is extremely limited. The overarching goal of this research is to understand the development of medial efferent mechanisms in humans and their involvement in auditory development. The objective of the proposed project is to systematically investigate the development of the temporal features of efferent effects. Our central hypothesis is that children exhibit developmental changes in efferent effects as a result of developmental plasticity in the brainstem. Our rationale is that detailed knowledge of how efferents work and develop will lead to a better understanding of the role of efferents in auditory development and perceptual deficits. The proposed project has two specific aims: 1) To determine the development of the efferent sensitivity to temporal fluctuations; and 2) To determine the developmental changes in the temporal dynamics of efferent effects. The proposed work is conceptually innovative because it will provide information on the poorly-understood developmental aspects of efferent effects in the children. The approach involves a compelling mix of sweep-tone OAE measurements with advanced signal processing (time-frequency analysis) techniques. The proposed research will provide significant new knowledge regarding how efferents develop in humans, and has implications for (1) for understanding the involvement of efferents in supra-threshold hearing, (2) forming theories of auditory development, (3) developing OAE-based tests of efferent function for predicting susceptibility to noise-induced hearing loss, (4) constructing accurate auditory models, and (5) designing improved hearing device algorithms. The principal investigator is experienced in conducting this kind of research in the current environment. Overall, the proposed project will make a sustained impact on our understanding of the human efferent system and its development, and on the field of pediatric audiology.