Susan E. Shore , Ph.D. ~Associate Professor Molecular & Integrative Physiology ~ Research Associate Professor of Otolaryngology MA, University of Witwatersrand Ph.D., Louisiana State University Medical School (1981) Kresge Hearing Research Institute (734)647-2116. sushore@umich.edu Director – Auditory Brainstem Physiology Laboratory

Current Research:

The objectives of the Shore laboratory are to study the roles of neural connections from other parts of the brain to the cochlear nucleus. A strong emphasis of our studies is on two major projection systems: the somatosensory innervation to the external regions of the cochlear nucleus, and descending connections from other auditory structures to core regions of the cochlear nucleus. In addition to the normal innervation, we also study changes in these pathways after various forms of hearing loss, and their possible roles in tinnitus, loudness recruitment and central auditory processing.
We use tract-tracing and immuno-histochemical methods to study neural connections and single and multi unit neurophysiology to study the responses of neurons to sounds. The implementation of multichannel recording and drug-delivery electrodes expedites our studies of single cell responses. Lesion studies and neuropharmacology are used to assess the role of extracochlear pathways in sound coding.

The laboratory is funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health, Tinnitus Research Consortium, Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID), and the Tinnitus Research Incentive (TRI).

Representative Publication:

Sumner CJ, Tucci D and Shore SE. Responses of ventral cochlear nucleus to contralateral sound following conductive hearing loss. J. Neurophysiol. 94:6, 4234-43,  2005

Shore, SE.  Multisensory integration in the dorsal cochlear nucleus: Unit responses to acoustic and trigeminal ganglion stimulation. European Journal of Neuroscience. 21(12), 3334-3348, 2005.

Papageorgiou D, Shore S, Bledsoe SC, Gulari M, and Wise KD. A shuttered neural probe with on-chip flowmeters for chronic in-vivo drug delivery. IEEE Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems. 15, 4, 1025-1034, 2006.

Zhou J and Shore SE. Convergence of spinal trigeminal and cochlear nucleus projections in the inferior colliculus.  J. Comp. Neurol.  495:100-112, 2006. 

Jain R and Shore SE. The external nucleus of the inferior colliculus integrates somatosensory and acoustic information. Neuroscience Letters, 395:71-75, 2006.

Shore, SE and Zhou, J.  Trigeminal influence on the cochlear nucleus and beyond.  Hearing Research - Special Edition to honor Aage Moller, 216-7, 90-99, 2006.

Zhou J and Shore SE. Vessicular glutamate transporters 1 and 2 are differentially associated with auditory nerve and spinal trigeminal inputs to the cochlear nucleus. J. Comp. Neurol.  500:4, 777-787, 2007.

Saul, S., Altschuler, RA, Shore, SE, Kabara, LL, Halsey, LL, Dolan D, Zhou, J and Glaser, T. Math5 expression and function in the central auditory system, Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience, In Press, 2007.

Shore, SE, Oldakowski, Hughes LF and Koehler, S. Noise induced hearing loss enhances dorsal cochlear nucleus responses to trigeminal stimulation. European Journal of Neuroscience, Early Online, December, 2007.  In Press, 27, 1, 2008.

Shore, SE, Zhou, J and Koehler, S.  Neural Mechanisms underlying Somatic Tinnitus.  Progress in Brain Research. In Press, 2007.

Back to list of faculty