This project seeks to introduce a new cochlear imaging modality to the hearing research community, to provide a high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) cochlear anatomical database for web-based access and analysis, and to develop advanced computational tools for the study of cochlear form and function. This project will open a new level of cochlear anatomical understanding, enable cochlear morphometric analyses and provide new insights into cochlear physiology. Addressing these areas of knowledge will facilitate advances in modeling cochlear fluid dynamics, drug transport, membrane motion, and implant technology, at all subscribing research institutions. The innovative aspect of this project is the use of an imaging technique called orthogonal-plane optical sectioning (OPFOS) to obtain high-resolution images from within the intact cochlea. Features, such as canals, blood vessels, membranes and nerve cells may be identified and sampled from these images for subsequent 3D reconstruction and quantitative analysis, with precision and resolution that exceeds that which is possible from other imaging modalities such as micro CT or magnetic resonance microscopy. Phase I of the project is aimed at automating what is currently a very time consuming and fatiguing image sequence acquisition process and collaborating with a small number of luminary centers to establish web-based access to this data and modest feature extraction tools. The Phase II endpoint is an extensive cochlear anatomical database at Spencer Technologies with tools to extract, visualize and analyze this data at virtually any internet-connected computer with subscriber access. The value of this work is two-fold: a market estimated at approximately $36 Million for Spencer Technologies, and a fundamental tool, which cannot be assessed in dollars, to combat hearing loss experienced by millions of Americans.
