Monkey brain work to understand how hearing and attention are controlled
Advancing primate models of human auditory cognitive control
This project uses rhesus monkeys to learn how the brain controls listening, attention, and memory for sounds to help people with communication problems.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Emory University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Atlanta, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11248753 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers train rhesus monkeys to do listening and attention tasks similar to ones people do, then record behavior and brain activity during those tasks. They will test which parts of auditory working memory, attention, and decision-making seen in humans also appear in monkeys. The team will compare those monkey results with what is known about human auditory cognitive control and study candidate brain circuits that support these skills. The goal is to make monkey models more useful for developing treatments for communication disorders.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Although this project studies monkeys rather than enrolling patients, people with communication disorders that involve problems with listening, auditory attention, or auditory working memory are the eventual group who could benefit and might qualify for future related human studies.
Not a fit: People whose communication problems are unrelated to auditory attention or memory (for example purely structural or motor speech disorders) are less likely to see direct benefit from these findings.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to better animal models that speed development of new therapies for people with communication disorders.
How similar studies have performed: Similar approaches have successfully modeled visual cognitive control in monkeys, but applying those techniques to auditory attention and communication is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Atlanta, United States
- Emory University — Atlanta, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hampton, Robert R — Emory University
- Study coordinator: Hampton, Robert R
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.