{"title":"Flow field dynamics in the pumping function of eustachian tube under varied middle ear pressure states.","authors":"Haoze Zhang, Zhenhao Fu, Jingcheng Zhou, Yulin Ding, Xiaolong Li, Mengyuan Guo, Shiming Yang, Fangyuan Wang, Zhaohui Hou","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109446","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heares.2025.109446","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Eustachian tube, a conduit linking the tympanic cavity to the nasopharynx, poses challenges for observation of its pressure dynamics due to its concealed anatomical position. Furthermore, computational models have not yet accurately replicated its intricate structure. We propose that simplification of the Eustachian tube's structure may represent a crucial step toward elucidating the mechanisms underlying intraluminal pressure variation. In the present study, simplified models were constructed from CT scans of patients with patulous Eustachian tube. These models captured the tube's key morphological features, including a blind-ended tubular structure with a sealed tympanic orifice, an open pharyngeal orifice, and a deformable central segment. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) was used to enable visualization of flow field alterations within the lumen during the transition from a closed to an open state under various simulated middle ear pressure conditions. The following phenomena were observed: (1) Bidirectional pumping at the onset of intraluminal negative pressure, characterized by simultaneous suction from both sides toward the center; (2) Variation of the pumping phenomenon under different middle ear pressure conditions; (3) Vortex generation at the tympanic orifice upon tubal opening under middle ear negative pressure. These findings provide novel insights into the functional mechanics of the Eustachian tube, and offer supporting evidence for the surgical rationale of myringotomy with grommet insertion in patients with otitis media with effusion (OME).</p>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"468 ","pages":"109446"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145299803","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hearing ResearchPub Date : 2025-10-09DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109448
Xiaoqin Luo, Wei Yuan, Jun Liu, Chanyuan Zhang, Chao Li, Gang Qin
{"title":"Integrative multi-dataset analysis identifies immune-inflammatory hub genes as diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for age-related hearing loss.","authors":"Xiaoqin Luo, Wei Yuan, Jun Liu, Chanyuan Zhang, Chao Li, Gang Qin","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109448","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heares.2025.109448","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Age-related hearing loss (ARHL) is a common neurodegenerative disorder in the elderly, but its molecular mechanisms and diagnostic biomarkers remain unclear. Here, by using the GSE49543 dataset (n = 40, Affymetrix microarray) from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) with limma, 17 ARHL-associated differentially expressed genes were identified, which were enriched in immune effector functions and the IL-17 signaling pathway. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) further revealed that 168 genes were associated with hearing loss (module significance > 0.3). Intersecting DEGs with this module yielded 15 candidates, which were prioritized via protein-protein interaction (PPI) network (STRING) and CytoHubba algorithms to 7 core genes. Machine learning refined these to 5 hub genes: Fcgr3, Cd68, Lgals3, Laptm5, and Mpeg1, showing excellent diagnostic performance. Validation in five independent transcriptomic datasets (GSE49543, GSE6045, GSE153882, GSE154833, and GSE233798) confirmed their upregulation in ARHL samples, and experimental verification via quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) further validated elevated mRNA (FCGR3, CD68, LGALS3, MPEG1) and protein (FCGR3, CD68, LGALS3) levels in aged mouse cochleae. Additionally, single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) dataset GSE274279 was integrated to validate hub gene expression at single-cell resolution. These findings identify Fcgr3, Cd68, Lgals3, Laptm5, and Mpeg1 as immune-inflammatory hub genes with potential as diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for ARHL.</p>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"468 ","pages":"109448"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145307806","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hearing ResearchPub Date : 2025-10-09DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109447
Björn Herrmann , Florian Scharf , Andreas Widmann
{"title":"Eye movements of younger and older adults decrease during story listening in background noise","authors":"Björn Herrmann , Florian Scharf , Andreas Widmann","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109447","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109447","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Assessments of listening effort are increasingly relevant to understanding the speech-comprehension difficulties experienced by older adults. Pupillometry is the most common tool to assess listening effort but has limitations. Recent research has shown that eye movements decrease when listening is effortful and proposed indicators of eye movements as alternative measures. However, much of the work was conducted in younger adults in trial-based sentence-listening paradigms during concurrent visual stimulation. The extent to which eye movements index listening effort during continuous speech listening, independently of visual stimuli, and in older adults, is unknown. In the current study, younger and older adults listened to continuous stories with varying degrees of background noise under free and moving-dots viewing conditions. Eye movements decreased (as indexed by fixation duration, gaze dispersion, and saccade rate) with increasing speech masking. The reduction in eye movements did not depend on age group or viewing conditions, indicating that eye movements can be used to assess effects of speech masking in different visual situations and in people of different ages. The pupil size was only sensitive to speech masking early in the experiment. In sum, the current study suggests that eye movements are a potential tool to assess listening effort during continuous speech listening.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"468 ","pages":"Article 109447"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145242560","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hearing ResearchPub Date : 2025-10-08DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109438
Nancy Sotero Silva, Christoph Kayser, Felix Bröhl
{"title":"Corrigendum to \"Unraveling eye movement-related eardrum oscillations (EMREOs): how saccade direction and tympanometric measurements relate to their amplitude and time course\" [Hearing Research, Volume 461(2025), 109276].","authors":"Nancy Sotero Silva, Christoph Kayser, Felix Bröhl","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109438","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heares.2025.109438","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":" ","pages":"109438"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145258104","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The neurochemistry of decreased sound tolerance: A magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) study of misophonia and hyperacusis","authors":"Jamie Ward , Romarua Agbude , Rebecca Smees , Julia Simner , Itamar Ronen","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109440","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109440","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study examined the concentrations of excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters (glutamate and GABA respectively) in two regions of interest (auditory and insular cortices) and a control region (visual cortex) to test the hypothesis that decreased sound tolerance would be linked to increased cortical excitability (more glutamate and/or less GABA). Misophonia (negative emotional responses to specific sounds) and hyperacusis (finding sounds atypically loud) were separately considered and key comorbidities excluded (tinnitus, migraine, autism). A MEGA-PRESS sequence was used for auditory cortex to optimise the detection of GABA. We found no significant group differences in neurotransmitter in any region and pre-registered Bayesian analyses suggested that these are sensitive null results. These findings argue against the idea that decreased sound tolerances are linked to neurochemically-driven differences in excitation/inhibition.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"468 ","pages":"Article 109440"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145271148","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hearing ResearchPub Date : 2025-10-04DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109444
Iris Van de Ryck, Nicolas Heintz, Iustina Rotaru, Debora Fieberg, Alexander Bertrand, Tom Francart
{"title":"Effects of speaker and listener sex on auditory attention decoding performance.","authors":"Iris Van de Ryck, Nicolas Heintz, Iustina Rotaru, Debora Fieberg, Alexander Bertrand, Tom Francart","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109444","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heares.2025.109444","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>Auditory Attention Decoding (AAD) is a technique utilizing brain signals to decode on which sound the listener focuses the attention. In most current studies, the effect of type of speech materials used and sex of the listener is not considered. We investigated the effect on AAD performance of factors related to the speaker (such as the sex of the speaker, background noise level, and same versus mixed-sex conditions) and the listener (sex of the listener).</p><p><strong>Design: </strong>Forty-two young adults with normal hearing participated in the study. They listened to 2 competing speakers and were instructed to attend to one speaker and ignore the other speaker, whilst electroencephalography (EEG) and electrooculography (EOG) were measured. Background noise was introduced in half of the conditions. AAD performance was compared across eight experimental conditions.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A significant main effect of speaker sex was found: A male target and/or male masker speaker resulted in higher AAD performance compared to a female speaker with a higher fundamental frequency (F0). These effects were found to be small and therefore likely clinically irrelevant.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>While no substantial effects were found on the factors investigated in this study, including diverse and realistic training scenarios remains a valuable approach to prevent potential influences from other factors.</p>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"468 ","pages":"109444"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145291973","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hearing ResearchPub Date : 2025-10-04DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109439
Yuanyuan Yang , Jianxin Qiu
{"title":"METTL3-mediated N6-methyladenosine modification regulates NLRP3 inflammasome activation in chronic suppurative otitis media","authors":"Yuanyuan Yang , Jianxin Qiu","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109439","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109439","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) is a common inflammatory condition characterized by persistent ear discharge and hearing loss. Recent studies have highlighted the importance of the NLRP3 inflammasome in the pathogenesis of various inflammatory diseases, including CSOM. Here, we investigated the role of METTL3 and N<sup>6</sup>-methyladenosine (m<sup>6</sup>A) modification in the regulation of NLRP3 inflammasome activation in CSOM.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>CSOM model mice were established by intraperitoneally injected with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and middle ear tissues were collected for analysis. Inflammatory cytokines including TNF-α, IL-1β, IFN-γ, and IL-6 were evaluated, as well as the levels of m<sup>6</sup>A related genes. The potential regulatory effects of METTL3 mediated m<sup>6</sup>A modification of NLRP3 was further studied to explain the inflammatory response in CSOM.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>We found that METTL3 overexpression increased the m<sup>6</sup>A level and mRNA stability of NLRP3, leading to enhanced inflammasome activation and production of inflammatory cytokines. Conversely, silencing METTL3 reduced NLRP3 expression and inflammasome activity. Rescue experiments with NLRP3 overexpression confirmed that the effects of METTL3 on inflammation were mediated through NLRP3. Additionally, the NLRP3 inhibitor MCC950 reversed the pro-inflammatory effects of METTL3 overexpression.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Our findings suggest that METTL3-mediated m<sup>6</sup>A modification plays a critical role in NLRP3 inflammasome activation and the inflammatory response in CSOM. Targeting the METTL3/NLRP3 axis may provide a novel therapeutic strategy for the treatment of CSOM.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"468 ","pages":"Article 109439"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145271147","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hearing ResearchPub Date : 2025-10-02DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109442
Nathiya Vaithiyalingam Chandra Sekaran , Susan L. Schantz , Daniel A. Llano
{"title":"Effects of polychlorinated biphenyls on the peripheral and central auditory systems","authors":"Nathiya Vaithiyalingam Chandra Sekaran , Susan L. Schantz , Daniel A. Llano","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109442","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109442","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), a class of persistent endocrine-disrupting chemicals, continue to pose significant risks to human and environmental health due to their widespread distribution, lipophilicity, and ability to bioaccumulate. Of particular concern is exposure during critical periods of neurodevelopment, which has been associated with long-lasting effects on sensory systems, including auditory processing. This review elaborates findings from both human epidemiological studies and animal models to examine the effects of PCBs on auditory function across the peripheral and central auditory pathways. Evidence indicates that PCB exposure during gestation and early postnatal life can lead to permanent auditory deficits. At the level of the auditory periphery, reductions in distortion-product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) and auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) suggest cochlear outer hair cell dysfunction, potentially mediated by oxidative stress. Centrally, alterations in the primary auditory cortex and inferior colliculus have been observed, including disrupted tonotopic organization, excitation–inhibition imbalance, and impaired neuroplasticity. Notably, such central neural changes can occur out of proportion to abnormalities in ABRs, pointing to central auditory vulnerabilities. Epidemiological data in humans further support these findings, with certain PCB congeners linked to a significantly elevated risk of hearing impairment in children. PCB exposure coupled with loud noise exposure, which is growing in prevalence, leads to cumulative deficits in auditory processing. Together, these findings highlight the multi-level impact of PCB exposure on the auditory system and highlight the need for further investigation into the molecular and circuit-level mechanisms underlying these effects. Understanding the actions of PCB congeners on the auditory system in various human population cohorts is important to inform risk assessment and guide future public health policies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"467 ","pages":"Article 109442"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145250851","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hearing ResearchPub Date : 2025-10-02DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109443
Shuangshuang Mao , Ziying Zhang , Can Zhang, Zihong Zhou, Xiaohua Tan, Dandan Song, Jianyun Zhang, Yang Song, Yu Hong, Rong Chen
{"title":"Deciphering the ototoxic effects of six organochlorine pesticides on HEI-OC1 cells and mouse cochlear organotypic cultures","authors":"Shuangshuang Mao , Ziying Zhang , Can Zhang, Zihong Zhou, Xiaohua Tan, Dandan Song, Jianyun Zhang, Yang Song, Yu Hong, Rong Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109443","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109443","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), persistent pollutants with mutagenic and carcinogenic risks, that threatens humans, have received limited scientific attention despite their well-documented toxicity. Our study examined the ototoxicity of six prevalent OCPs (p,p’-DDT, p,p’-DDE, p,p’-DDD, Hexachlorocyclohexane, Endosulfan, Heptachlor) that are frequently identified in human biological samples, including blood and breast milk. Our findings revealed that OCPs caused cochlear damage in postnatal day 3 (P3) mice, and exhibited a dose-dependent toxicological response in House Ear Institute-Organ of Corti 1 (HEI-OC1) cells. OCPs exposure led to the generation of ROS (H₂O₂, O₂⁻, mtROS), calcium overload, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) decrease, and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress activation. Western blot showed a marked reduction in the Bcl-2/Bax ratio, an elevated level of cleaved caspase-9/3, and four increased ER stress markers (p-eIF2α, ATF6, GRP78, CHOP). These results suggest that OCPs induce auditory cell apoptosis through interconnected pathways: oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, calcium dysregulation, and ER stress. This study provides mechanistic insights into OCP-related ototoxicity, emphasizing the need for stringent regulation of these pervasive environmental toxins.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"468 ","pages":"Article 109443"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145242557","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hearing ResearchPub Date : 2025-10-01Epub Date: 2025-07-23DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2025.109375
E Noordanus, L H M Mens, A J van Opstal
{"title":"Reaction times of cochlear implant users to a change in electrode or modulation frequency in the presence of a masker.","authors":"E Noordanus, L H M Mens, A J van Opstal","doi":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109375","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heares.2025.109375","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Spatial and temporal selectivity vary substantially between cochlear implant users, resulting in large differences in speech perception. Direct electrode stimulation offers precise control to capture this variability. However, most studies using direct stimulation have not incorporated interfering stimuli, which may not reflect the complex nature of speech and ambient noise. To address this gap, we introduce the Electrode Interaction Reaction Time (ELI-RT) paradigm, which uses amplitude-modulated, interleaved pulses on two closely spaced electrodes at clinical pulse rates. ELI-RT includes two test types: \"∆EL\", measuring the participants' manual reaction times to a change in stimulated electrode, and \"∆MF\", measuring reaction times to a modulation frequency change. Both tests include ongoing interference on an adjacent electrode. We also measured speech-in-noise recognition thresholds. We analyzed data from 16 unilateral cochlear implant users and found that ELI-RT could dissociate participant-, electrode-, and test-dependent factors. The effect of the electrode location along the array differed considerably between participants. The ∆EL and ∆MF tests provided partly complementary insights. Reaction times on these tests correlated with speech-in-noise perception, especially for changes that typically yielded shorter reaction times and for electrodes located in the middle of the array. In conclusion, reaction times to changes in the place of stimulation and modulation frequency, in the presence of interference from an adjacent electrode, offer detailed insights into the acuity of information transfer along the cochlear implant electrode array to the central auditory pathways in cochlear implant users.</p>","PeriodicalId":12881,"journal":{"name":"Hearing Research","volume":"466 ","pages":"109375"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144798881","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}