Coordinated Somatosensory and Acoustic Stimulation Alters Auditory Bran Activity: Implications for Treating Hearing Disorders

In this talk, I will present a new concept for noninvasive neuromodulation (Multimodal Synchronization Therapy, MST) that takes advantage of the brain’s dense interconnectivity among different sensory, motor, cognitive, and limbic centers to potentially achieve localized activation of pathogenic neurons. To demonstrate proof-of-concept, we performed experiments in a guinea pig model, focusing on interactions between the somatosensory and auditory system. We discovered a somatotopic organization within a core auditory region that provides at least one way for systematically modulating the auditory pathways with body stimulation. We have also been able to alter coding properties, such as suppression of excitability, in different auditory neurons by varying the location of body stimulation, acoustic stimulation parameters, and the delay between the body and acoustic stimuli. Suppression of excitability may not only be relevant for hearing disorders, such as tinnitus and hyperacusis, but also for other brain disorders with abnormal hyperactivity in pathogenic neurons. Based on these initial results, I will discuss the challenges and opportunities for further developing and translating MST for treating brain disorders in patients.