Meet Our Scientists

Cochlear implant outcomes in children, language development, prosthetic auditory development

Dr. Horn founded the Prosthetic Auditory Development Lab at Seattle Children's in 2015, creating a dedicated research environment for understanding how deaf and hard-of-hearing children develop auditory and language skills after cochlear implantation. His research is notable for bridging surgical care and developmental science, connecting what happens in the operating room to a child's communication trajectory years later. He has published influential work on predictors of language outcome, helping families and audiologists set realistic expectations and optimize programming strategies. As a clinician-scientist who both implants children and studies their outcomes, Dr. Horn embodies the translational mission of VMBHRC.

Auditory brain development, cochlear implants in infants, MEG/EEG neuroimaging, language acquisition in hard-of-hearing children

Dr. Lau directs the Laboratory for Auditory Neuroscience and Development, combining brain imaging (MEG, EEG) and behavioral measures to understand how the auditory system develops in the first year of life — and how that development shapes language acquisition. Her NIH Pathway to Independence Award supports a landmark longitudinal study tracking cortical speech processing in normal-hearing and hard-of-hearing infants, with the goal of creating objective clinical tools that predict language risk earlier and personalize intervention. Uniquely among hearing researchers, Dr. Lau is also a trained speech-language pathologist who has worked clinically in the US, Canada, Uganda, Swaziland, and Bolivia — experiences that keep her science grounded in the realities of patients and families. She was recognized with the 2022 UW School of Medicine Outstanding Research Mentor Award.

Vocal learning neural circuits, songbird models, balance function, TBI and stroke applications

Dr. Perkel is one of the world's leading experts on the neuroscience of vocal learning, using songbirds to dissect the brain circuits that enable the acquisition and production of complex learned vocalizations. Because these circuits closely mirror the human speech-language network, his research has direct relevance to understanding and treating communication disorders caused by stroke and traumatic brain injury. His joint appointment bridges basic biology and clinical otolaryngology, a collaboration that has yielded unique insights into auditory processing and motor control. Dr. Perkel also contributes to VMBHRC's work on balance function, extending his expertise in neural circuit analysis to the vestibular system.

Vestibular prosthesis, balance disorders, eye movement control, non-human primate research

Dr. Phillips is a Research Professor who directs the Dizziness and Balance Center at UW Medical Center, overseeing both the care of patients with complex balance disorders and a vigorous research program in vestibular prosthetics. His laboratory spent years establishing the safety and efficacy of an implantable vestibular neurostimulator in non-human primate models before advancing to human trials. The device is designed to restore the inner ear's role in balance — analogous to what a cochlear implant does for hearing — and early human data show meaningful improvements in gaze stability and daily function. His work gives hope to Ménière's disease patients and others who have lost their ability to drive or work due to uncontrolled dizziness.

Hair cell development and regeneration, zebrafish models, ototoxicity prevention, translational hearing loss research

Dr. Raible holds the Virginia Merrill Bloedel Chair in Basic Hearing Research and has spent his career using zebrafish to decode the biology of hair cells — the delicate sensory receptors that convert sound into neural signals and that, once destroyed in humans, do not regrow. His zebrafish screening platform has been instrumental in discovering small molecules that protect hair cells from aminoglycoside antibiotics and cisplatin, with one class of compounds now in an FDA-approved IND trial. He is a core member of the international Hearing Restoration Project, and his work on the genetic and molecular basis of hair cell development underpins multiple regenerative medicine strategies. Dr. Raible's lab also trains the next generation of hearing researchers, mentoring graduate students and postdoctoral fellows who go on to lead their own programs.

Cochlear implants, vestibular devices, music perception, auditory neuroscience

Dr. Rubinstein leads VMBHRC as its Director and holds the Virginia Merrill Bloedel Chair in Clinical Hearing Research, one of the most prestigious endowed positions in the field. His research spans the engineering and neuroscience of cochlear implants, with a particular focus on restoring music perception — a frontier largely unaddressed by current CI technology. He recently developed a signal-processing algorithm that improves pitch discrimination in CI users, now under evaluation in a 20-patient clinical trial. In addition to his research leadership, Dr. Rubinstein practices as a cochlear implant surgeon, keeping his work deeply rooted in clinical reality.

Hair cell regeneration in birds and mammals, stem cell approaches, translational regenerative hearing research

Dr. Stone is an internationally recognized authority on hair cell regeneration, with decades of research comparing how birds — which naturally regenerate hair cells throughout life — differ from mammals, which largely cannot. By identifying the molecular brakes that suppress regeneration in the mammalian cochlea, her lab is building a roadmap for therapeutic strategies that could one day restore hearing after noise trauma, aging, or ototoxic drug exposure. She is a founding participant in the Hearing Restoration Project, a consortium committed to achieving human hair cell regeneration. In addition to her research, Dr. Stone is a dedicated mentor, training PhD students and ENT surgical residents in the fundamentals of hearing science and translational research.