Stressed-out Biology

An auditory-sciences publication investigates a common hormone with an uncommon cell type

Auditory function is a crucial part to how we feel connected with the world and other people. The stress hormone, cortisol in humans, is integral to how we adapt to a changing world. Scientific studies indicate complex roles of stress hormone to preserve hearing at the level of the auditory organ, the cochlea. Gaining a deeper understanding of stress in relation to hearing preservation is important for happy, long-lived people. Humans have a limited capacity to regenerate damaged cochlear tissues and hearing loss correlates with age-related cognition. On the flip side, auditory function relates to stress-relieving activities including mindfulness and music therapy. As modern society presents complex stressful conditions, more research in auditory stress biology is needed and will ultimately join the schema of modern stress in humans.

In a recent article published by the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, we investigated the role of two stress-hormone receptors in a subset of cochlear cells during recovery from noise exposure. Access the article here to learn more about our study of supporting cells which collectively maintain cochlear health.

In future posts, I want to feature some data solutions I used in the manuscript. Stay tuned!