# Project 2 - Animal Behavior

> **NIH NIH P01** · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA · 2020 · $261,643

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT- Project 2
Our long-term goal is to ameliorate the debilitating consequences of age-related hearing loss- ARHL
(presbycusis). ARHL interferes with effective communication by reducing the audibility of sounds, degrading
the intelligibility of speech in quiet and noisy backgrounds. The overall objective of this research is to identify
and understand effective methods for mitigating these aspects of ARHL. Project 2 employs behavioral
experiments with animal models toward this end, integrating the findings with those of sister projects on this
Program Project grant. The central hypothesis is that targeted therapeutic interventions will induce beneficial
changes in the ear and brain- central auditory system (identified with behavioral tests), leading to amelioration
of chronic deficits that define presbycusis. In conjunction with sister projects, we will identify the behavioral,
perceptual, neurophysiological, and molecular bases of ARHL and how they are affected by our biotherapeutic
interventions. Specific Aim 1 focuses on the potential to use aldosterone supplementation to improve inner ear
and brain function. Specific Aim 2 uses targeted special sounds, called augmented acoustic environments
(AAEs) to improve processing of speech timing features and hearing in background noise. Specific Aim 3
evaluates a new intervention, transcranial magnetic stimulation, for the treatment of maladaptive plasticity in
the aged central auditory system following peripheral hearing loss. The comprehensive framework proposed
here is the first to our knowledge combining basic and applied methods to address amelioration of AHRL in a
manner that allows rapid translation of research findings to clinical practice – the foremost goal of NIA and NIH
at large.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9868868
- **Project number:** 5P01AG009524-25
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** JOSEPH P WALTON
- **Activity code:** P01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $261,643
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** — → 2023-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9868868

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9868868, Project 2 - Animal Behavior (5P01AG009524-25). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9868868. Licensed CC0.

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