Repairing the tiny nerve connections that carry sound to the brain
Official title: Regeneration of Auditory Synapses
Funded at John D Dingell VA Medical Center · NIH-11357986 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project aims to restore damaged nerve connections that send sound signals to the brain to help people who have trouble processing sounds despite normal hearing tests.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | John D Dingell VA Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Detroit, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2023 |
| Project end | January 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| NIH project number | 5I21RX003866-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11357986 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People who have difficulty understanding speech or have central auditory processing problems despite normal audiograms—for example some veterans with blast or TBI exposure and some older adults—would be the likely future candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People whose hearing loss comes from damaged hair cells or measurable threshold loss on standard hearing tests may not benefit from synapse-targeted approaches.
What this research studies
You would hear that researchers are studying the tiny nerve connections between the inner ear and the brain that help you understand sound. They will focus on the spiral ganglion neuron to cochlear nucleus connection and test whether a protein called progranulin can protect or regrow those connections in lab models. The team will use mice, including models with Alzheimer's-related changes, to mimic age- and injury-related loss of these synapses and measure how well signals are transmitted. The goal is to find approaches that could later become treatments for people who struggle to process speech or other sounds despite having normal hearing thresholds.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to treatments that restore the nerve connections needed for clearer sound processing and better speech understanding.
How similar studies have gone: Related work targeting cochlear synapse loss has shown promise in animal models, but research specifically on the central SGN-CN synapse and use of progranulin is largely new and unproven.
Where this research is happening
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John D Dingell VA Medical Center
Detroit, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hu, Zhengqing — John D Dingell VA Medical Center
- Study coordinator: Hu, Zhengqing
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.