Northeast Ohio Medical University · BiologyAuditory Emotion Research Lab
Jeffrey James Wenstrup · Rootstown, Ohio
Research Focus
Dr. Jeffrey Wenstrup's lab focuses on understanding how the amygdala processes auditory information and influences emotional responses to sounds. Their research examines how this brain region helps us interpret vocal communication by evaluating the emotional significance of vocal signals and how various factors such as sex and past experiences impact this processing. The ultimate goal is to inform therapeutic approaches for disorders like anxiety and autism that affect emotional reactions to auditory stimuli.
auditory processingamygdalaemotional behaviorcalcium imagingelectrophysiologyacoustic communicationneuromodulationanxiety disordersautismschizophrenia
Research Aims
3AIM 01Investigate how the basolateral amygdala processes vocalizations with different emotional valences.
AIM 02Examine the impact of past experiences and hormonal states on amygdala responses to auditory signals.
AIM 03Explore the role of acetylcholine in modulating amygdala activity related to rewarding and aversive sounds.
Skills the Lab Values
electrophysiologycalcium imaginganimal modelsdata analysismouse strainsbehavioral experimentsneural circuit mappingneuromodulator manipulationchronic imagingacoustic communication techniques
Output against the department
Publications83bottom 26% of dept.767th of 1,033
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations3.0kbottom 22% of dept.802nd of 1,033
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.