New University of Michigan Tinnitus Discovery — Signal Timing

[Nick47]

A startup funding report from the University of Michigan has just been released.

Auricle is briefly mentioned. Quote:

@Fra, it is very old. Do not read anything into it.

 

[Fra]

@Fra, it is very old. Do not read anything into it.

It's not. It's linked from a UMich newsletter I just received on May 29th. The email stated the following:

Accelerate Blue Fund Highlights $6.8M Total Investment in U-M Startups In 2024 Impact Report

The Accelerate Blue Fund recently published their 2024 Annual Report, detailing the Fund's performance and the progress of their portfolio companies. Pivotal in transforming research breakthroughs into tangible societal benefits, the Accelerate Blue Fund offers necessary seed capital to early-stage startups.

 

[Saba]

Thank you, @Fra. You made my day. Bless the possibilities and the progress in tinnitus research!

 

[ThomasF]

The post on their LinkedIn describes them as a "licensee of bimodal patents" to a number of companies. I imagine this has been discussed before, but it suggests to me that instead of developing its own products entirely in-house, the company is licensing these patents to others who are working on devices aimed at the same goals as the Susan Shore device and its underlying research.

To me, this means that multiple firms may be developing similar tools or treatments, which could increase the chances of effective solutions reaching the market. Since the patent licensing covers such a broad range, it may also explain why it is difficult to get specific information directly from Auricle.

Again, this has likely been mentioned before, but in my view, it is encouraging. It suggests that other companies are also working toward the same goal of effective treatment.

 

[Gb3]

2024 Update: The AB Fund led a pre-seed round that enabled Auricle, Inc. to move forward with product development and human factors testing in preparation for obtaining FDA clearance.

Isn't this just referring to the human trials they already completed?

 

[STEELERS1951]

NBB Seminar Series​

Tuesday, June 17th, 2025 at 11:00am​

The seminar will be In-Person.​

​

Susan Shore, Ph.D.​

Professor Emerita of Otolaryngology, Physiology, & Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan​

---

"Reversing pathological neural plasticity to treat tinnitus"​

Abstract:

The dorsal cochlear nucleus is the first site of multisensory convergence in mammalian auditory pathways. Principal output neurons, the fusiform cells, integrate auditory nerve inputs from the cochlea with somatosensory inputs from the head and neck. After noise exposure, fusiform cells exhibit increased spontaneous activity and cross-unit synchrony, physiological correlates of tinnitus. Underlying mechanisms include homeostatic and timing-dependent plasticity. To reverse the pathological plasticity, we delivered repeated bisensory auditory-somatosensory stimulation to guinea pigs with tinnitus, choosing an inter stimulus interval known to induce long-term depression (LTD). The LTD inducing bisensory (but not unimodal auditory) stimulation reduced physiological and behavioral evidence of tinnitus in the guinea pigs. Next, we applied the same bisensory treatment to human subjects with tinnitus using a double-blinded, sham-controlled, crossover study. The LTD inducing bisensory stimulation reduced both tinnitus loudness and intrusiveness. Unimodal auditory stimulation did not deliver either benefit. Bisensory auditory-somatosensory stimulation that induces LTD in the dorsal cochlear nucleus may hold promise for suppressing chronic tinnitus, which reduces quality of life for millions of tinnitus sufferers worldwide.

Herklotz Conference Room

300 Qureshey Research Lab
Irvine

 

[kingsfan]

UC Irvine is just a little bit farther from the University of Michigan.

 

[Meyer37]

UC Irvine is just a little bit farther from the University of Michigan.

Seeing Christopher in your profile picture reminds me of Phil Leotardo, who also wore a neck brace, and how poor posture has worsened the intensity of my tinnitus. A good reminder to focus on posture!

Is anyone planning to attend the seminar in person? It seems like a fantastic and rare opportunity to learn more about the current status of tinnitus research and the Shore Device.