Non-aidable severe to profound congenital hearing loss is an indication for cochlear implantation(CI).The outcome of CI is associated with various factors,among which the time of auditory deprivation and implantation age are crucial.Generally,the younger the implantation age,the better the outcome,likely related to the critical period of auditory center development and plasticity.Development of the auditory center after birth relies on auditory stimulation.Congenitally deaf patients experience delayed structural and functional development of the auditory center due to lack of auditory stimulation during the critical period,with cross-modal reorganization in the auditory cortex.Chronic electrical stimulation of the cochlea leads to synaptic remodeling of auditory cortex neurons,cortical structure reorganization,and gradual maturation of cortical responses,improving auditory functions.This might be associated with expression of neu-ronal plasticity-related factors such as c-fos,matrix metallopeptidase-9(MMP-9),and brain-derived neurotrophic factor(BDNF),and is regulated by excitatory-inhibitory neurotransmitters.Miniature pigs congenital hereditary deafness bear high similarities to humans including genetic phenotypes,auditory development patterns,temporal bone anatomy,inner ear morphology,and central auditory system structures,offering more advantages than traditional animal models of con-genital deafness.They can be employed to study the impacts of auditory deprivation and chronic cochlear electrical stim-ulation on central auditory development and plasticity and explore the mechanism of plasticity.
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