2010 Auditory System and GRS Conference, Symposia & Workshops -Auditory System @ Colby-Sawyer College 6-13-18-2010 & Second Graduate Research Seminar 6-12-13-2010 in New London, Ne

Gordon Research Conferences, East Greenwich RI

Investigators

Abstract

The ability to hear and understand complex sound stimuli depends on precisely organized networks of neurons with specialized properties that enable detection and perception of sounds quickly and over a wide range of intensities and frequencies. Hearing begins with the detection of sound by mechanosensitive hair cells in the inner ear. This information is encoded and faithfully transmitted to the central nervous system by the spiral ganglion. Subsequently, a series of processing events occur in parallel in the auditory brainstem, converging once again in the inferior colliculus. The inferior colliculus projects to the auditory thalamus and on to the auditory cortex, which is the seat of sound perception. Most auditory research groups focus on discrete elements of auditory processing, such as hair cell function or the electrophysiological properties of auditory neurons. However, the perception of sound is ultimately a product of all of these independent events, many of which influence each other. A failure at any level of the auditory circuitry has ramifications for the entire system, especially during development when mechanisms of plasticity can induce permanent changes in wiring. The study of these issues is the goal of the second biennial Gordon Research Conference on The Auditory System, which will take place at Colby-Sawyer College from June 13-18, 2010 and will be preceded by the second associated Graduate Research Seminar on June 12-13, 2010. This award provides support for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to attend these events, which will provide a rich training environment and advance the understanding of auditory circuit assembly and function at all levels.