Research Overview
Ontogeny of the Vertebrate Sensory Processes
This project consists of continuing studies of the structural and functional embryology of the auditory system. Embryological experiments are conducted on the brainstem auditory pathways of the chick. They concentrate on early embryological events involving cellular interactions that may underlie the development of topographic registry between successive regions of the auditory pathways. State of the art microscopic and cell marking methods are used to investigate cell lineage, migration, and axonal terminal field formation. Functional development is examined in the inner ear and cochlear nucleus of gerbils. These experiments are designed to examine the development of high frequency hearing, and to investigate relationships between the ontogeny of mature neuronal responses, place-code development, and nonlinear "active" properties of the inner ear. Ontogenetic properties of otoacoustic emissions are directly compared to neurophysiological response properties.
Ontogeny of the Vertebrate Sensory Processes
