Auditory Physiology & Psychoacoustics Research Lab (APPL)

Nemours Biomedical Research, Delaware

About Our Lab

About This Lab

The Auditory Physiology & Psychoacoustics Research Lab (APPL) is dedicated to studying the functional development of hearing in children. The lab conducts fundamental and clinical studies on various types of pediatric hearing losses. Our main mission is to improve detection and diagnosis of specific types of hearing loss and find proper management for children with hearing loss.

The laboratory conducts studies on children with Auditory Processing Disorders, Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, inner ear malformations, Friedreich Ataxia, late-onset hearing loss and rare auditory disorders. Techniques available at the lab allow for the assessment of the cochlear function and its regulation by efferent pathways and for the recording of evoked potentials from the brainstem up to the auditory cortex.

Lab Head
Thierry Morlet, PhD
Current Research Group
  • L. Ashleigh Greenwood, AuD,  Research Audiologist
  • Kyoko Nagao, PhD, Assistant Research Scientist
  • Rebecca Gaffney, Student Research Intern
  • Keith Brown, Student Research Intern
  • Raj Sheth, Student Research Intern
  • Kimberly Zwissler, Student Research Intern
Research Publications

Representative Publications

Multi-site diagnosis and management of 260 patients with Auditory Neuropathy/Dys-synchrony (Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder). Berlin C.I., Hood L.J., Morlet T., Wilensky D., Li L., Rose Mattingly K., Taylor-Jeanfreau J., Keats B.J.B, St. John P., Montgomery E., Shallop J.K., Russell B.A., Frisch S.A. (2010) Int. J. Audiol. 49: 30-43.

Central auditory processing deficiency with anatomic deficit in left superior temporal lobe. Grindle C.R., O’Reilly R.C., Morlet T., Finden S. (2010) Laryngoscope. 120: 1671-1674.

Prevalence of vestibular and balance disorders in children. O’Reilly R.C., Morlet T., Nicholas B.D., Josephson G., Horlbeck D., Lundy L., Mercado A. (2010) Otol. Neurol. Otol Neurotol. 31: 1441-1444.

Comprehensive vestibular and balance testing in the dizzy pediatric population: a review of 132 patients. O’Reilly R.C., Greywoode J., Morlet T., Miller F., Henley J., Church C., Campbell J., Beaman J., Cox A.M., Zwicky E., Bean C., Falcheck S. (2011) Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 144: 142-8.

Development of the vestibular system and balance function: differential diagnosis in the pediatric population. O'Reilly R, Grindle C, Zwicky EF, Morlet T. (2011) Otolaryngol. Clin. North Am. 44: 251-271.

Hearing loss in children with mitochondrial disorders. Chennupati SK, Levi J, Loftus P, Jorlin C, Morlet T, O’Reilly R. (2011) Int. J. Pediatr. Otorhinolaryngol. 75: 1519-1524.

Vestibular and Balance Testing in Childhood Migraine. O’Reilly RC, Morlet T, Pazuniak M, Greywood J, Levi J. (2012) Laryngoscope. 122; Suppl 4:S93-4.

Auditory nerve function following cochleitis. (2012) Levi J., Morlet T., O’Reilly RC. International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology. 76: 1696-1701.

Current issues in auditory neuropathy spectrum Disorder. (2012) L. Hood and T. Morlet. Translational Perspectives in Auditory Neurosciences. Special Topics. Kelly Tremblay and Robert Burkard (eds). Plural Publishing. 35-68.

Clinical Characteristics of Children with Cochlear Nerve Dysplasias. Levi J., Ames J., Bacik K., Drake C., Morlet T., O’Reilly RC. Laryngoscope. (2013) 123(3):752-6.

Clinical Characteristics of Pediatric Granular Myringitis. Levi JR, Ames JA, Gitman L, Morlet T, O'Reilly RC. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. (2013) 148(2):291-6.

Differentiating ANSD from CAPD. (2013) Morlet T., Greenwood LA., Berlin CI. Auditory Processing Disorders: Assessment, Management and Treatment. Second Edition. Donna Geffner and Deborah Ross-Swain (eds). Plural Publishing. San Diego, CA. 211-225.

A homozygous SLITRK6 nonsense mutation is associated with progressive auditory neuropathy in humans. Morlet T., Rabinowitz MR., Looney LR., Riegner T., Greenwood LA., Sherman EA., Achilly N., Zhu A., Yoo E., O'Reilly RC., Jinks RN., Puffenberger EG., Heaps A., Morton H., Strauss KA. Laryngoscope. In Press

Contact Auditory Physiology & Psychoacoustics Lab

Contact Information

Phone: (302) 651-6839
Fax: (302) 651-6895
appl@nemoursresearch.org