Occupational
Grant
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This research addresses an important public need, the protection
of an estimated 10 million workers in the U.S. who rely heavily
on their voice as a primary tool of trade. Evidence has been growing
that occupational voice users, such a s teachers, telephone workers,
ministers, counselors, interviewers, are at risk for vocal injury
because they get inadequate recovery times from prolonged speaking.
The underlying hypothesis is that there is a limited vibration dose
that vocal fold tissues can withstand. As for hand-transmitted vibration
in power tools use, a safe dose is governed by frequency, amplitude,
and duration of vibration exposure. Microphone use solves the overdose
problem related to vocal loudness, but does not address the problem
of excessive duration. A voice dosimeter has been designed, tested,
and is currently in use by teachers in the Denver area public school
system to measure vocal dose. The teachers also self-monitor their
vocal fatigue levels. In this renewal application, the primary focus
will be on the molecular underpinnings of tissue response to excessive
vibration. Specific aims are to (1) determine the ideal geometric
and viscoelastic properties of the lamina propria, (2) quantify
voice recovery times and relate them to auto-perceptive ratings,
(3) culture distinct cell types at various states of differentiation,
(4) determine the relative merits of co-culture for in vitro monolayer
systems, (5) engineer a 3D in vitro model of the lamina propria
in a bioreactor, (6) identify and functionally characterize candidate
vibration-responsive genes, (7) develop a theoretical model of economic
voice production, and (8) explore two types of economy-based vocal
therapy. The ultimate goal is to provided heavy voice users with
safety criteria based on genetic disposition to vocal injury, degree
of training in economic voice use, accumulated dose of vibration
in a typical work day, and the amount of recovery available at night
and on weekends. A multi-disciplinary research team has been assembled
to address this public health concern at physical, biochemical,
molecular, and behavioral levels of investigation.
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