Research summary

Research summary

I have over 30 years of experience in the field of noise-induced hearing loss, hair cell damage, and hair cell regeneration in animal models.  In 1986 I discovered that the chicken cochlea is capable of regenerating new hair cells to replace those that were lost from noise exposure or drug damage. Since my initial discovery, hair cell regeneration has become a key focus of research at NIH/NIDCD and in a number of major academic laboratories throughout the world. It is believed that an understanding what controls regeneration will lead directly to clinical applications that can treat genetic, trauma-induced, or age-related hearing loss in humans.  My current projects include 1) a genome-wide association screen of genes critical to protection from noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL);  2) a mass spectrometric analysis of antioxidant access to the cochlear fluids administered by four different systemic routes;  3) the contribution of stroma cells to the development and progression of melanoma tumors;  and 4) identifying the biochemical pathways associated with NIHL that are responsive to near infrared light (NIR) treatment and to utilize these to develop a non-invasive treatment strategy to protect the cochlea from NIHL experienced by military personnel.