Thanos Tzounopoulos
“Family – Pursuit of Excellence – Science – Discovery – Helping Others – Distinction – Happiness.
From my Inaugural Lecture marking my recent appointment to Endowed Chair of Auditory Physiology.”
Director, Pittsburgh Hearing Research Center- Endowed Professor and Vice Chair of Research, Department of Otolaryngology
Current Research
We are combining electrophysiological, imaging and behavioral techniques to investigate the cellular, molecular and systems mechanisms underlying normal and pathological auditory processing.
Our recent studies are focusing on the role of zinc as a novel neurotransmitter in the brain and its role on auditory processing.
Another area of our current research focuses on tinnitus and its underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms. Based on our recent findings on the molecular mechanisms underlying the induction of tinnitus and in collaboration with the medicinal chemist Dr. Peter Wipf of the University of Pittsburgh, we are developing and testing novel specific Kv7.2/3 (KCNQ2/3) activators for preventing the triggering of tinnitus. Moreover, our current tinnitus-related studies are aimed towards understanding the neuronal mechanisms that underlie the maintenance of tinnitus…
