# Identifying neural circuits that support effortful listening

> **NIH NIH K99** · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $132,300

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Candidate: My long-term career goal is to establish an independent research program focusing on the neural
mechanisms of listening effort, and explore how adolescent hearing loss alters this mechanism. My previous
training has provided me with a strong foundation in acoustics, auditory physiology, behavioral neuroscience,
and hearing loss-induced deficits in sensory processing and perception. I propose to expand my skillset with
additional training in cognitive mechanisms of auditory perception, awake-behaving recordings, pharmacological
and chemogenetic attenuation of neural activity in awake-behaving animals, and pupillometric measures. During
the K99 phase, I will continue working towards independence by developing the intellectual and technical skills
needed for success. This includes attending workshops on putting together a successful job application and
chalk talk, and learning effective strategies for the job interview and lab management. By the end of the R00
phase, I will have a strong publication record and the preliminary data needed for a successful R01 application.
Environment: The K99 phase of the award will take place in the Center for Neural Science at New York
University (NYU), an excellent environment for the proposed training. My primary mentor, Dr. Dan Sanes, has
30+ years of experience in developmental auditory neuroscience. He will provide his expertise and mentorship
in all areas of my training, including auditory sensory processing, hearing loss-induced sensory and cognitive
deficits, and awake-behaving methods. Additional mentoring will be provided by Dr. Matthew McGinley (Baylor
College of Medicine), an expert on attentional auditory mechanisms and rodent pupillometry, and Dr. Matthew
Winn (University of Minnesota), an expert on listening effort and hearing loss.
Research: Listening to speech requires intact sensory and cognitive processing. For those with hearing loss,
additional mental effort is often required, resulting in cognitive fatigue that can have long-term negative
implications for quality of life. However, the neural mechanisms underlying effortful listening, and how hearing
loss alters this mechanism, is uncertain. This proposal will identify a cortical network that is engaged during an
effort-based auditory task, and use perturbations of neural activity to determine whether candidate regions are
required for task performance during difficult listening conditions (K99). Next, I will use wireless neural recordings
in sensory and non-sensory cortical areas, along with pupillometry approaches, to explore how adolescent
hearing loss disrupts this cortical mechanism (R00).

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10515870
- **Project number:** 1K99DC020570-01
- **Recipient organization:** NEW YORK UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Kelsey Anbuhl
- **Activity code:** K99 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $132,300
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-07-01 → 2024-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10515870

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10515870, Identifying neural circuits that support effortful listening (1K99DC020570-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10515870. Licensed CC0.

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