The Genetic contribution to solving the cocktail-party problem
Samuel R. Mathias,
Emma E.M. Knowles,
Josephine Mollon,
Amanda L. Rodrigue,
Mary K. Woolsey,
Alyssa M. Hernandez,
Amy S. Garrett,
Peter T. Fox,
Rene L. Olvera,
Juan M. Peralta,
Satish Kumar,
Harald H.H. Göring,
Ravi Duggirala,
Joanne E. Curran,
John Blangero,
David C. Glahn
Affiliations
Samuel R. Mathias
Department of Psychiatry, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Corresponding author
Emma E.M. Knowles
Department of Psychiatry, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
Josephine Mollon
Department of Psychiatry, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
Amanda L. Rodrigue
Department of Psychiatry, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
Mary K. Woolsey
Research Imaging Institute, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
Alyssa M. Hernandez
Research Imaging Institute, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
Amy S. Garrett
Research Imaging Institute, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
Peter T. Fox
Research Imaging Institute, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA; South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
Rene L. Olvera
South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and Department of Human Genetics, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, Brownsville, TX 78520, USA
Juan M. Peralta
South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and Department of Human Genetics, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, Brownsville, TX 78520, USA
Satish Kumar
South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and Department of Human Genetics, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, Brownsville, TX 78520, USA
Harald H.H. Göring
South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and Department of Human Genetics, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, Brownsville, TX 78520, USA
Ravi Duggirala
South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and Department of Human Genetics, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, Brownsville, TX 78520, USA
Joanne E. Curran
South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and Department of Human Genetics, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, Brownsville, TX 78520, USA
John Blangero
South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute and Department of Human Genetics, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine, Brownsville, TX 78520, USA
David C. Glahn
Department of Psychiatry, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
Summary: Communicating in everyday situations requires solving the cocktail-party problem, or segregating the acoustic mixture into its constituent sounds and attending to those of most interest. Humans show dramatic variation in this ability, leading some to experience real-world problems irrespective of whether they meet criteria for clinical hearing loss. Here, we estimated the genetic contribution to cocktail-party listening by measuring speech-reception thresholds (SRTs) in 425 people from large families and ranging in age from 18 to 91 years. Roughly half the variance of SRTs was explained by genes (h2 = 0.567). The genetic correlation between SRTs and hearing thresholds (HTs) was medium (ρG = 0.392), suggesting that the genetic factors influencing cocktail-party listening were partially distinct from those influencing sound sensitivity. Aging and socioeconomic status also strongly influenced SRTs. These findings may represent a first step toward identifying genes for “hidden hearing loss,” or hearing problems in people with normal HTs.
