Auditory System Study Section – AUD
The Auditory System Study Section (AUD) reviews applications on the structure and function of the auditory and peripheral vestibular systems in human and animal models. Approaches include molecular, cellular, physiological, genetic, pharmacological, computational, behavioral, bioengineering, and neuroimaging methods. Research reviewed in this study section generally emphasizes mechanisms underlying normal and abnormal function in the auditory and vestibular systems, and/or ways to improve diagnosis and treatment of auditory and vestibular diseases.
Review Dates
Topics
- Anatomy and physiology of the auditory and vestibular sensory organs.
- Auditory function and changes across lifespan, at the levels of neural circuits, cellular systems, and synaptic physiology.
- Molecular and genetic mechanisms, and gene discovery, for auditory and vestibular function, development, maturation, and aging.
- Development of clinical tools for diagnosis of auditory dysfunction, including ear diseases, hearing loss, central auditory processing disorders, tinnitus, and hyperacusis.
- Hair cell regeneration, gene therapy, drug discovery and delivery.
- Development of hearing aids and other auditory prostheses, including middle ear implants, cochlear implants, brainstem implants, and tinnitus suppression devices.
- Behavioral and psychological therapy for auditory dysfunction, such as auditory training and behavioral therapy for tinnitus.
- Auditory perception, neural correlates of auditory function.
- Computational modeling of synaptic plasticity, neural circuitry, and interactions among brain structures for auditory processing.
- The influence of attention on auditory representation and information flow in the brain. Multisensory integration when the focus is the auditory system.
Shared Interests and Overlaps
Applications with a focus on neural mechanisms of integrative systems and higher order processes such as attention, cognition, learning, memory, and decision making may be reviewed by Neuroscience of Basic Visual Processes Study Section (NBVP), or in some cases Learning, Memory and Decision Neuroscience (LMDN) or Sensory-Motor Neuroscience (SMN).
Studies of the auditory system that emphasize topics including ion channels and transporters, glial physiology, cell biology, neural development and regeneration may be reviewed in the Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Neuroscience IRG (MDCN) in study sections such as Neurotransporters, Receptors, Channels and Calcium Signaling (NTRC), Cellular and Molecular Biology of Glia (CMBG), Synapses, Cytoskeleton and Trafficking (SYN), and Neurogenesis and Cell Fate Study Section (NCF) or Neurodifferentiation, Plasticity, Regeneration and Rhythmicity (NDPR). Applications involving auditory cues, but focused on cognition and perception in human subjects, may be reviewed in Human Complex Mental Function (HCMF).
Applications focused on gene discovery and genetic variation in hearing loss may be reviewed in AUD if centered on auditory system function; if centered on development and/or use of molecular genetic and genomic approaches Molecular Neurogenetics (MNG) or Genetics of Health and Disease (GHD) may review the application.
Language and Communication Study Section (LCOM) generally reviews studies that focus on speech perception and language processing, rather than auditory function and sound perception.
