Neural Aspects of Tinnitus

描述（申请人提供）：本研究的主要目的是：（1）获得水杨酸和声过度刺激引起的耳鸣的行为学评估，并测量个体动物耳鸣的时程和音调，（2）确定神经活动的变化（单位活动，局部场电位）在清醒大鼠听觉皮层使用16通道记录电极和（3）确定神经活动的时程和模式如何与耳鸣的音调和时程的行为测量相关，（4）确定水杨酸诱导的耳鸣和噪声诱导的耳鸣的行为和神经生理测量是否可以被NS 1883抑制，一种钾通道激动剂，在抑制水杨酸引起的耳鸣方面显示出希望。两种行为技术，SIPAC和GPIAS，将用于独立确认耳鸣的时间过程和音调。将使用长期植入的16通道电极阵列在清醒动物中评估自发和声音诱发的神经活动。该项目将显着推进我们对动物模型中噪音和药物诱导耳鸣的时间过程和音调的理解，帮助识别与耳鸣相关的听觉皮质中的关键神经生理变化，并评估钾通道激动剂的有效性抑制水杨酸盐和噪音诱导的耳鸣。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The overall goals of this project are to (1) obtain behavioral estimates of tinnitus induced by salicylate and acoustic overstimulation and measure the time course and the pitch of the tinnitus in individual animals, (2) identify the changes in neural activity (single unit activity, local field potentials) in the auditory cortex of awake rats using16 channel recording electrodes and (3) determine how the time course and pattern of neural activity correlate with behavioral measures of the pitch and time course of tinnitus, (4) determine if the behavioral and neurophysiological measures of salicylate induced tinnitus and noise-induced tinnitus can be suppressed by NS1883, a potassium channel agonist that has shown promise in suppressing salicylate-induced tinnitus. Two behavioral techniques, SIPAC and GPIAS, will be used to independently confirm the time course and pitch of the tinnitus. Spontaneous and sound evoked neural activity will be assessed in awake animals using chronically implanted 16-channel electrode arrays. The project will significantly advance our understanding of the time course and pitch of noise and drug induced tinnitus in an animal model, aid in identifying the key neurophysiological changes in the auditory cortex that are associated with tinnitus, and evaluate the effectiveness of a potassium channel agonist in suppressing salicylate and noise-induced tinnitus.