Past Events

Robert Fettiplace, PhD
Waisman Center
April 5, 2024 @ 8:30 am - 9:30 am
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Human ototacoustic emissions OAEs), both spontaneous and evoked, were first reported in the 1970’s. They are used as evidence for an active mechanical process in the cochlea, and distortion product OAEs are clinically important; however, their mechanism of generation is still not understood. Geckos display prominent spontaneous OAEs at multiple frequencies. We have developed an isolated preparation of the gecko cochlea and have recorded from the auditory hair cells. I shall provide evidence of a mechanical resonance and a new amplification mechanism that probably underlies the OAEs.

April 3, 2024 @ 12:15 pm - 1:00 pm
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Come with Your Scheduling Questions

In Person & Virtual Options
April 1, 2024 @ 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

The monthly meeting of the DEIAB Committee is dedicated to discussing the latest developments, announcements, and updates across all our task forces. This meeting provides a platform for committee members to collaborate, share insights, and …

Sydney Hayes, M.A., CCC-SLP
62 Goodnight Hall
April 1, 2024 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
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While motor impairment is the primary diagnostic criteria for Cerebral Palsy, the majority of children with cerebral palsy also present with comorbid speech and communication impairments. A range of classification tools have been developed to describe functional motor abilities in children with Cerebral Palsy, including gross motor, fine motor, and speech motor domains. Research has indicated a significant relationship between overall communication skills and gross motor development. However, the longitudinal relationship between speech motor and gross motor development specifically has yet to be explored. Using the Viking Speech Scale, a measure of speech motor impairment, and the Gross Motor Function Classification Scale, a measure of gross motor impairment, this study investigated the longitudinal relationship between gross motor and speech motor severity in children with CP as well as the nature and direction of this change over time. Results of this study such as the patterns of growth identified across these two domains, considerations for different speech and motor severity levels, and implications for clinical practice will be discussed.

G. Nike Gnanateja, Ph.D.
Waisman Center
March 22, 2024 @ 8:30 am - 9:30 am
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In this presentation, I will delve into my exploration of the past and present applications of the Frequency Following Response (FFR), a non-invasive electroencephalographic tool, in assessing speech processing and plasticity in humans. FFRs offer invaluable insights into the brain's processing of speech and music, capturing essential elements such as periodicity and harmonic components. I will provide a concise overview of FFRs, and the metrics utilized in their analysis. Additionally, I will discuss the neural origins of FFRs, shedding light on their contribution to plasticity theories. Additionally, presenting our recent research on the neural sources of FFRs, I will explore its implications for evolving plasticity theories. I will briefly touch upon methodological advancements in ecologically valid FFR stimulus presentations. Finally, I will outline our upcoming longitudinal study aiming to leverage FFRs to longitudinally assess plasticity in sub-cortical and cortical processing.

March 20, 2024 @ 12:15 pm - 1:00 pm
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Questions and Answer Session

Michelle Bretl, M.S., CCC-SLP
62 Goodnight Hall
March 18, 2024 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
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Vocal fold fibroblasts are key players in the wound healing response and yet, little is known about their normal gene expression compared to diseased expression. While fibroblasts are necessary to facilitate wound closure and normal healing, they can also take on a pathological phenotype that leads to excessive proliferation and fibrosis or scarring. Given the challenge of obtaining fibroblasts from pathological vocal folds, normal fibroblasts treated with a specific growth factor, TGF-β1, is an in vitro model commonly used to represent changes seen in scarred vocal folds. Additionally, RNA sequencing has become a valuable tool for transcriptomic analysis of cell populations to get an idea of global gene expression differences across different treatment groups. This study aimed to define differences in the gene expression between three vocal fold fibroblast groups: scarred fibroblasts, healthy control fibroblasts, and "scar-like,” TGF-β1 treated fibroblasts. Results of this research may help to identify specific gene targets to mitigate the adverse response of vocal fold fibroblasts to injury.

420 Goodnight Hall
March 13, 2024 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
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In-person event with snacks provided

Dhatri Devaraju, Ph.D.
Waisman Center
March 8, 2024 @ 8:30 am - 9:30 am
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Effective speech perception requires sustained attention and constant updating and manipulation of speech information stored in the working memory. Electroencephalography (EEG) can be an effective non-invasive tool that can be used to assess how these processes interplay at different timescales in the brain, which can be a window into understanding disordered attentional control in individuals with communication disorders. The talk will focus on two studies assessing neural mechanisms underlying attentional control in individuals who stutter. The first study specifically evaluates inhibitory control in children who stutter using a child-friendly visual go/no-go task. Although there were no significant differences in children who stutter compared to their peers in terms of spatio-temporal analyses of their event-related potentials, different patterns of frontal beta rhythms were evident between the groups. The second study aimed at evaluating the effects of sustained attention and working memory on phonological processing using an auditory n-back task in adults who stutter. Adults who stutter showed altered neural representations in terms of spatio-temporal distributions compared to their peers. Further, I will be talking about the current advances that we are making in leveraging machine learning algorithms to classify syllables based on EEG responses in an n-back task under increased attention and working memory demands.

March 6, 2024 @ 12:15 pm - 1:00 pm
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