Areas of Interest
Synaptic and transmitter biochemistry and plasticity in the in
the auditory parts of the adult brain. Hearing loss, which
affects over 28 million people in the U.S.A., is accompanied by
additional pathological symptoms, such as tinnitus (phantom
sound), misperception of loudness and degraded ability to detect
meaningful sounds in a noisy environment. An effective treatment
for these symptoms has yet to be established. Since altered
synaptic signaling is thought to generate these symptoms, we
focus on auditory neural pathways to understand how hearing
impairment alters synaptic biochemistry and structure.
Biochemical, molecular and immunohistochemical methods (A)
identify transmitters, receptors, regulatory and cell signaling
pathways, and (B) determine the regulatory and signal
transduction mechanisms underlying transmitter, receptor and
synaptic plasticities induced by hearing loss. Neuroanatomical
methods define altered synaptic organization. We find that in
adults, surgical or noise lesions of the cochlea that produce
hearing loss reorganize synaptic connections in brain auditory
structures. Some of the consequences include synaptic pruning,
synaptogenesis, an increased strength of excitatory transmission
and deficient inhibitory transmission. These plasticities appear
to be driven by signal transduction pathways which alter
regulatory mechanisms.
Publications
Selected Publications
Zhang J, Suneja SK, Potashner SJ. (2004) Protein kinase A and
calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II regulate glycine
and GABA release in auditory brain stem nuclei. J Neurosci Res.
Feb 1;75(3):361-70.
Muly SM, Gross JS, Potashner SJ. (2004) Noise trauma alters
D-[3H]aspartate release and AMPA binding in chinchilla cochlear
nucleus. J Neurosci Res. Feb 15;75(4):585-96.
Zhang J, Suneja SK, Potashner SJ. (2003) Protein kinase A and
calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II regulate
D-[3H]aspartate release in auditory brain stem nuclei. J
Neurosci Res. Oct 1;74(1):81-90.
Suneja SK, Potashner SJ. (2003) ERK and SAPK signaling in
auditory brainstem neurons after unilateral cochlear ablation. J
Neurosci Res. Jul 15;73(2):235-45.
Zhang J, Suneja SK, Potashner SJ. (2003) Protein kinase C
regulation of glycine and gamma-aminobutyric acid release in
brain stem auditory nuclei. Exp Neurol. Jul;182(1):75-86.
Suneja SK, Potashner SJ. (2002) TrkB levels in the cochlear
nucleus after unilateral cochlear ablation:correlations with
post-lesion plasticity. Brain Res. Dec 13;957(2):366-8.
Muly SM, Gross JS, Morest DK, Potashner SJ. (2002)
Synaptophysin in the cochlear nucleus following acoustic trauma.
Exp Neurol. Sep;177(1):202-21.
Zhang, J., Suneja, S.K. and Potashner, S.J. (2002) Protein
kinase C regulates D-[3H]aspartate release in auditory brain
stem nuclei. Exptl. Neurol., 175, 245-256.
Potashner S.J., Suneja S.K. and Benson C.G. (2000) Altered
glycinergic synaptic activities in guinea pig brain stem
auditory nuclei after unilateral cochlear ablation. Hearing
Res., 147, 125-136.
 View more publications, see
Pubmed listing. |
