Rooms 607 & 610, Walton Research Building

Phone: 843-792-8483

Funding:

• As Principal Investigator, NIH/NIDCD R03 DC007506                                             
  “Cell Survival and Cell Death in the Auditory Nerve”
• As Co-Investigator, NIH/NIA  R01 AG14748    Schmiedt (PI)
  “Physiological Studies of Age-Related Hearing Loss”
• As Co-Investigator, NIH/NIDCD R01 DC00713    Schulte (PI)                                           
  “Inner Ear Ion Transport Mechanisms”
• As Co-Investigator, NIH/NIDCD P50 DC00422   Dubno (Prg Dir)               
  “Experimental and Clinical Studies of Presbyacusis”

Education:

• M.D., Jinzhou Medical College, China, 1991
• Ph.D., Otolaryngology, Capital University of Medical Science, China, 1997
• Residency, Otolaryngology, Jinzhou Medical College
• Fellowship, Otolaryngology, Beijing Institute of Otolaryngology, Beijing Tong-Ren Hospital
• Postdoc., Purdue University, 1997-1999; Medical University of South Carolina,   1999-2003

Research Interests:

Our research in the laboratory focuses on: 1) determining the cellular and molecular mechanisms of sensorineural hearing loss and 2) exploring the possibility of stem cell therapy in hearing loss.  Spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs) are the primary afferent neurons that carry auditory information from the sensory cells of the inner ear to the central nervous system.  SGN degeneration, often occurring with age or exposure to noise and ototoxic drugs, can cause permanent sensorineural hearing loss.  Genetically modified and ototoxic damaged animal models have been used for understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms in SGN pathogenesis and potential therapeutic applications.  Our recent research on stem cell transplantation is aimed at replacing damaged SGNs, protecting SGNs from apoptosis and promoting functional recovery in several auditory-neuropathy models.  Auditory electrophysiology, molecular/cellular biology, immunohistochemistry, transmission electron and confocal microscopy are used in our investigations.

Selected Publications:

H. Lang and C. Liu (1996). Apoptosis and the Mode of Hair Cell Loss (Review). Foreign Medical Sciences: Otorhinolaryngology Section. 20(6): 328-331.

H. Lang and C. Liu (1996). Repair of the Sensory Epithelium in Guinea Pig Utricle after Gentamicin Ototoxicity. Chin Arch Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 3(5): 308-321.

H. Lang (1997). Cytoskeletal proteins in sensory epithelium of inner ear (Review). Foreign Medical Sciences: Otorhinolaryngology section. 20(6): 328-331.

H. Lang and C. Liu (1997).  Apoptosis and hair cell loss in the vestibular sensory epithelium of the guinea pig following a gentamicin insult.  Hear Res. 111(1-2):177-84.

H. Lang, M.M. Bever and D.M. Fekete (2000). Cell Proliferation and Cell Death in the Development Chick Inner Ear. J Comp Neurol. 417:205-220.

R.A. Schmidet and H. Lang (2000).  Functional changes in the ear with old age: a review.  J Acoust Soc Am. 107(5):2797.

H. Lang and D.M. Fekete (2001). Lineage Analysis in the Chicken Inner Ear Show Differences in Clonal Dispersion for Epithelial, Neuronal, and Mesenchymal Cells. Dev Biol. 234:120-137.

H. Lang, B.A. Schulte and R.A. Schmiedt (2002). Endocochlear Potential and Action Potential Recovery Functions in the C57BL/6J Mouse. Hear Res. 172:118-126.

R.A. Schmiedt, H.Okamura, H. Lang and B.A. Schulte (2002). Ouabain Application to the Round Window of the Gerbil Cochlea: a Model of Auditory Neuropathy and Apoptosis. J Assoc Res Otolaryngol. 03:223-233.

A.C. Spiess, H. Lang, B.A. Schulte, S.S. Spicer and R.A. Schmiedt (2002). Effects of Gap Junction Uncoupling in the Gerbil Cochlea. Laryngoscope. 112:1635-1641.

R.A. Schmiedt, H. Lang, H. Okamura and B.A. Schulte (2002). Effects of Furosemide Applied Chronically to the Round Window: A Model of Metabolic Presbyacusis. J Neuroscience. 22(21):9643-9650.

Y. Li, C. Liu, X. Chen, H. Lang, B. Liu, L. Guo and D. Han (2002). Distribution of calmodulin in the hair cells of the guinea pig cochlea.  Chin Arch Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Surg.9(6): 352-354.

H. Lang, B.A. Schulte and R.A. Schmiedt (2003). Cell Division in the Gerbil Inner Ear: Effects of Chronic-Furosemide Treatment and Age. J Assoc Res Otolaryngol. 4(2):164-175.

Y. Wang, A. Meng, H. Lang, S. A. Brown, J.L. Konopa, M.S. Kindy, R.A. Schmiedt, J.S. Thompson and D. Zhou (2004). Activation of NF-kB in vivo selectively protects the murine small intestine against ionizing radiation-induced damage. Cancer Res. 64:6240-6246.

H. Lang, B.A. Schulte and R.A. Schmiedt (2005). Ouabain induces apoptotic cell death in type I spiral ganglion neurons, but not type II neurons. J Assoc Res Otolaryngol. 6:63-74.

H. Lang, Y. Ebihara, R.A. Schmiedt, H. Minamiguchi, D. Zhou, N. Smythe, L. Liu, M. Ogawa, B.A. Schulte (2006). Hematopoietic origin of mesenchymal cells and fibrocytes in the adult inner ear.  J Comp Neurol. 496: 187-201.

H. Lang, B.A Schulte, D. Zhou, N. Smyth, S.S. Spicer, R.A. Schmiedt (2006).  Deficiency of the p50 subunit of nuclear-factor kappa B causes progressive age-related auditory nerve degeneration and increased susceptibility to noise-induced hearing loss.  J Neurosci. 26(13): 3541-3550.

M. Moody, H. Lang, N. Smyth and R.A. Schmiedt (2006).  Topical application of mitomycin-c is ototoxic to the gerbil.  Otol Neurotol 27(8):1186-1192.  

H. Okamura, H. Lang, R.A. Schmiedt, S.S. Spicer and B.A. Schulte (2006).  Cochlear adaptation to chronic furosemide treatment. Hear Res. (in press).

H. Lang, B.A. Schulte, J. Goddard, L. Wei, H. Michelle and R.A. Schmiedt (2006). Transplantation of Mouse Embryonic Neural Stem Cells into the Inner Ear of an Auditory Neuropathy Model. J Comp Neurol. (in revision).

J.C. Goddard, H. Lang, R.A. Schmiedt, N. Smyth, B.A Schulte (2006). Hepatanol application to the gerbil round window: A model of fibrocyte apoptosis. J. Assoc. Res. Otolaryngol. (in revision).

H. Lang and R.A. Schmiedt (2006). The effect of chronic furosemide on spontaneous rates of auditory-nerve fibers in young gerbils.  J. Assoc. Res. Otolaryngol. (submitted)

J.C. Goddard, R.A. Schmiedt, B.A Schulte, N. Smyth, H. Lang. A mouse model of auditory neuropathy. Hear Res (in preparation)