Tuesday, February 17, 2026 2/17/2026

Spatial Patterining in Zebrafish Inner Ear

Award Number: R01DC023245
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DEAFNESS AND OTHER COMMUNICATION DISORDERS
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 02/13/2026
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 01/31/2031

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Spatial Patterining in Zebrafish Inner Ear - PROJECT SUMMARY Balance disorders are common and devastating – it is estimated that one third of US adults over the age of 40 (69 million) have vestibular dysfunction. A major underlying cause of vestibular dysfunction is damage to hair cells in the vestibular organs of the inner ear. Unfortunately in mammals including humans the consequences of this damage are irreversible. The zebrafish has emerged as a model system for studying vestibular function, with its small size and optical clarity advantages for studying hair cells in vivo. Moreover within the zebrafish inner ear, hair cells are able to fully regenerate after damage. Within vestibular organs hair cells are organized into distinct central and peripheral regions with functional and molecular identities highly conserved across species. We propose experiments to study how these spatial identities are initially established within the zebrafish ear. We will determine how hair cells are added during development, and how they undergo phenotypic switching, changing spatial identity during organ growth. We will test how spatial identity regulates regional differences in mitochondrial activity. We will test whether retinoic acid signaling plays a conserved role in zonal patterning. We will test whether transcription factors enriched in zonal expression underlie gene regulatory networks establishing spatial patterning. Together these studies will provide a comprehensive picture for how this core conserved feature of vestibular function is established.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2026 ( Subtotal = $490,487 )
2026	2026	UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON	4333 BROOKLYN AVE NE	SEATTLE	WA	98195	KING	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	000	1	2/13/2026	NEW	$490,487
														Subtotal = $490,487

Grand Total All Awards = $490,487

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Spatial Patterining in Zebrafish Inner Ear

Award Number: R01DC023245

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DEAFNESS AND OTHER COMMUNICATION DISORDERS

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 02/13/2026

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 01/31/2031

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