Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40623796›Full record

ArticleClinical and experimental otorhinolaryngology2026

Activation of the Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA)ergic Neural Circuit in Salicylate-Induced Tinnitus: the Inferior Colliculus to the Medial Geniculate Body.

Xu-Yuan Peng, Jiang Wang, Ming-Yue Gong, Li-Yuan Zhang, Min Zhang, Zhi-Bin Chen, Zheng-Quan Tang, Lei Cheng

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Clinical and experimental otorhinolaryngology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Xu-Yuan PengDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology and Hearing International Jiangsu Ear and Hearing Center, The First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Jiang WangDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology and Hearing International Jiangsu Ear and Hearing Center, The First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Ming-Yue GongDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology and Hearing International Jiangsu Ear and Hearing Center, The First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Li-Yuan ZhangDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology and Hearing International Jiangsu Ear and Hearing Center, The First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Min ZhangDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology and Hearing International Jiangsu Ear and Hearing Center, The First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Zhi-Bin ChenDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology and Hearing International Jiangsu Ear and Hearing Center, The First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.
Zheng-Quan TangSchool of Life Sciences, Anhui University, Hefei, China.
Lei ChengDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology and Hearing International Jiangsu Ear and Hearing Center, The First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.

Funding

Jiangsu Province Capability Improvement Project through Science, Technology and Education JSDW202203National Natural Science Foundation of China 32271059National Natural Science Foundation of China 82071061Young Scholars Fostering Fund of the First Affiliated Hospital with Nanjing Medical University PY202422
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesThis study aimed to investigate the regulatory functions of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic neural circuits from the inferior colliculus (IC) to the medial geniculate body (MGB) in salicylate-induced tinnitus.

methodsMice were treated with salicylate to induce tinnitus, and tinnitus-like behaviors were evaluated via gap prepulse inhibition of acoustic startle. Using combined viral tracing methodologies, we identified and mapped the pathways and connections from the IC to the MGB. Furthermore, we employed Gq-coupled human M3 designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs (DREADDs) and Gi-coupled human M4 DREADDs to achieve targeted excitation or suppression of GABAergic neurons in the IC and MGB. Following the administration of clozapine N-oxide, which binds to these receptors, we modulated these neural circuits to assess their impact on tinnitus severity in a mouse model.

resultsOur findings demonstrated that mice exposed to salicylate exhibited tinnitus-like behaviors. GABAergic neurons projecting retrogradely from the MGB to the IC were primarily concentrated in the external nucleus of the IC. After clozapine N-oxide administration, chemogenetic activation of IC-MGB GABAergic neurons aggravated salicylate-induced tinnitus. Additionally, activation of GABAergic neurons between the IC and MGB induced the perception of tinnitus even without salicylate. However, chemogenetic inhibition of the IC-MGB GABAergic circuit did not reverse salicylate-induced tinnitus.

conclusionThese findings suggest that activation of the IC-MGB GABAergic neural circuit may contribute to tinnitus generation through a mechanism distinct from that of salicylate-induced tinnitus. This study provides novel insights into the mechanisms underlying tinnitus.

Indexed as

Auditory PathwayGABAergicInferior ColliculusMedial Geniculate BodyNeural CircuitTinnitus

Identifiers

PMID40623796
PMCPMC12973495

What Socratic holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.