Abstract

Presbycusis, or age-related hearing loss, affects both elderly humans and dogs, significantly impairing their social interactions and cognition. In humans, presbycusis involves changes in peripheral and central auditory systems, with central changes potentially occurring independently. While peripheral presbycusis in dogs is well-documented, research on central changes remains limited. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a useful tool for detecting and quantifying cerebral white matter abnormalities. This study used DTI to explore the central auditory pathway of senior dogs, aiming to enhance our understanding of canine presbycusis. Dogs beyond 75% of their expected lifespan were recruited and screened with brainstem auditory evoked response testing to select dogs without severe peripheral hearing loss. Sixteen dogs meeting the criteria were scanned using a 3 T magnetic resonance scanner. Tract-based spatial statistics was used to analyze the central auditory pathways. A significant negative correlation between fractional lifespan and fractional anisotropy was found in the acoustic radiation, suggesting age-related white matter changes in the central auditory system. These changes, observed in dogs without severe peripheral hearing loss, may contribute to central presbycusis development.

Details

Title
Voxelwise analysis of the central hearing pathway in senior dogs reveals changes associated with fractional lifespan
Author
Yang, Chin-Chieh 1 ; Yap, Pew-Thian 2 ; Wu, Ye 3 ; Zidan, Natalia 1 ; Fefer, Gilad 1 ; Nelson, Nathan C. 4 ; Gruen, Margaret E. 5 ; Olby, Natasha J. 5 

 North Carolina State University, Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, USA (GRID:grid.40803.3f) (ISNI:0000 0001 2173 6074) 
 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Department of Radiology and Biomedical Research Imaging Center (BRIC), Chapel Hill, USA (GRID:grid.10698.36) (ISNI:0000 0001 2248 3208) 
 Nanjing University of Science and Technology, School of Computer Science and Engineering, Nanjing, China (GRID:grid.410579.e) (ISNI:0000 0000 9116 9901) 
 North Carolina State University, Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, USA (GRID:grid.40803.3f) (ISNI:0000 0001 2173 6074) 
 North Carolina State University, Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, USA (GRID:grid.40803.3f) (ISNI:0000 0001 2173 6074); North Carolina State University, Comparative Medicine Institute, Raleigh, USA (GRID:grid.40803.3f) (ISNI:0000 0001 2173 6074) 
Pages
18121
Publication year
2024
Publication date
2024
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
e-ISSN
20452322
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
3089002107
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2024. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.