Posted on 05/08/2026 1:02:11 PM PDT by Red Badger
The neurotransmitter serotonin, best known for its role in regulating mood, may also influence the severity of tinnitus, new research has found.
According to a mouse study by scientists in the US and China, increasing serotonin signaling in a specific brain circuit increased behaviors associated with the neurological disorder.
Since serotonin is often targeted to alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety, this finding could help guide the development of treatments that relieve these conditions without exacerbating tinnitus.
"We've suspected that serotonin was involved in tinnitus, but we didn't really understand how. Now, using mice, we've found a specific brain circuit involving serotonin that goes straight to the auditory system, and found that it can induce tinnitus-like effects," says neuroscientist Zheng-Quan Tang of Anhui University in China.
"When we turned that circuit off, we were able to ameliorate the tinnitus significantly. This gives us a much clearer picture of what's going on in the brain – and points toward new possibilities for treatment."
VIDEO AT LINK...........
Tinnitus is usually defined as a 'phantom' noise heard only by the patient, often a high-pitched ringing, hissing, buzzing, or throbbing. Some of the underlying mechanisms are known, such as hearing loss or earwax buildup, but in many cases, it seems to be a neurological issue, generated not in the ears but in the brain's auditory system.
It's hard to describe the unrelenting anguish of an auditory system that just will not shut up, but many patients also report depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation. The treatments for those mood disorders often involve a class of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which block the reabsorption of serotonin in neurons, increasing serotonin signaling.
Several studies over the last few decades have implicated serotonin in tinnitus, but direct evidence of a link and a mechanism has been lacking. To investigate this mechanism, the researchers designed an experiment in mice.
First, they mapped the pathway from the dorsal raphe nucleus, a serotonin-producing region in the brainstem, to the dorsal cochlear nucleus, an auditory region. This pathway helps regulate how sound signals are processed in the brain.
Next, they genetically altered mice so that they could use either light or drugs to activate serotonin-releasing neurons in the dorsal raphe nucleus.
Mice with switched-on serotonin circuits and control mice were then tested using several paradigms to see whether they behaved in ways suggesting they were experiencing a subjective sound.
One of the most telling indicators was the inability to perceive silence gaps in a sound played to the mice – a widely used proxy for tinnitus in animal studies.
"When you stimulate these serotonergic neurons, we can see that it stimulates activity in the auditory region in the brain," says neuroscientist Laurence Trussell of Oregon Health & Science University.
"We also saw that animals then behaved as if they were hearing tinnitus. In other words, it's producing symptoms that we would expect to be experienced as tinnitus in humans."
When they used inhibitory tools to turn this serotonergic-to-auditory circuit off entirely, the tinnitus-like behavior in the mice decreased. And finally, when they used loud noise to induce tinnitus, the mice behaved the same way as they did when serotonin activity was turned up.
Related: Tinnitus Is Somehow Connected to a Crucial Bodily Function:
https://www.sciencealert.com/tinnitus-is-somehow-connected-to-a-crucial-bodily-function
The results suggest that the link between serotonin and tinnitus is real and that this brain circuit may play a direct role in generating the phantom sounds experienced by patients, warranting further investigation in human subjects.
It also suggests that the management of depression or anxiety that presents with tinnitus requires careful handling and treatment.
"Our study suggests a delicate balance," Trussell says.
"It may be possible to develop cell- or brain region-specific drugs that steer the elevation of serotonin in some brain regions but not others. In that way, it may be possible to separate the beneficial and important effects of the antidepressant from the potentially harmful effects on hearing."
The findings have been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
If this story has raised concerns or you need to talk to someone, please consult this list to find a 24/7 crisis hotline in your country, and reach out for help.
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The ringing in my ears is so loud it deserves to be called a scream. It overpowers most ambient sounds and makes conversations impossible unless I can see their lips.
I haven’t been to a concert yet where they played loud enough for me to not hear that screaming.
Tinnitus makes up a fraction of my overall VA disability.
“Now, using mice, we’ve found a specific brain circuit involving serotonin that goes straight to the auditory system, and found that it can induce tinnitus-like effects,” says neuroscientist Zheng-Quan Tang of Anhui University in China.
“When we turned that circuit off, we were able to ameliorate the tinnitus significantly. This gives us a much clearer picture of what’s going on in the brain – and points toward new possibilities for treatment.” Tang wants to cut my circuit off?
Some of those devices are acoustic detection and direction-finding devices used for air defense against bomber formations before RADAR was developed.
Me too!...........
Say what?
Interesting...
I thought it was a follow-up to the Cold War number stations...
The post-Cold War humming stations...
Guess I’ll stop trying to decode the messages...
Progress towards a cure?
Still 0.00%.
GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid, γ-aminobutyric acid) is the chief inhibitory neurotransmitter in the developmentally mature mammalian central nervous system. Its principal role is reducing neuronal excitability throughout the nervous system.
BRAVE Search summarizer responded to the question of "would GABA reduce seretonin?"
Yes, GABA generally reduces serotonin activity. GABA acts as an inhibitory neurotransmitter that physically surrounds and connects to serotonin-producing neurons in the dorsal raphe nucleus, effectively acting as a "volume dial" that quiets serotonin neurons and reduces their firing rate when GABA activity increases.
This interaction is complex and depends on receptor types:
GABA-B receptors reduce the release of glutamate onto serotonin neurons, which dampens serotonin activity.
GABA-A receptors can increase glutamate release onto serotonin neurons, which may stimulate serotonin activity, though the net effect typically leans toward inhibition or modulation rather than direct enhancement.
Additionally, serotonin itself modulates GABA, creating a bidirectional relationship where serotonin can suppress GABAergic inhibition in certain brain regions, but GABA’s primary direct influence on serotonin neurons is inhibitory. AI-generated answer. Please verify critical facts.
Snip...."Conclusions
snip..."The data for a role of GABA in tinnitus is strong. Multiple sources of information converge on GABA (Table 1). Neurochemical changes and anatomical and physiological localization to GABA synapses in tinnitus have historically provided good reason to hypothesize that augmentation of GABAergic inhibition will help to ameliorate symptoms. Such data continue to accumulate. However, the pharmacological data with GABAkines are not overwhelming convincing from the limited controlled clinical trial"
I’m right there with you. I should not have sat in front of the speakers at Van Halen.
Mine too.
I am getting more of an appreciation for Traditional Chinese Medicine the more I read Epoch Times and the more I read about the failures of Western Medicine regarding Covid and decided to include it.
Hope it helps!
Brave Search and summarizer returned:
"Tapping the base of the skull is a technique used for temporary tinnitus relief by causing the suboccipital muscles to relax and reduce tension, which is a common underlying cause of the condition.
To perform this, place your palms over your ears with fingers resting on the back of your head and your middle fingers pointing toward each other just above the skull base. Place your index fingers on top of your middle fingers and snap them onto the skull to create a loud, drumming noise, repeating this 40-50 times several times a day.
Additionally, applying sustained pressure to specific acupressure points can help alleviate symptoms:
Gates of Consciousness (GB-20): Located in the hollow areas at the base of the skull between the vertical neck muscles; press firmly upward with index and middle fingers for 10 seconds.
Wind Screen (SJ-17): Located below the earlobe in the depression between the jawbone angle and the mastoid bone; apply gentle pressure for 1-2 minutes to relieve tension in the head, neck, and ears.
Wind Mansion (GV-16): Located in the hollow near the center base of the skull on the back of the neck; apply gentle pressure for one to two minutes to relieve neck stiffness and stress.
I read the study and I noticed that they looked people who were taking “Z” drugs, I was specifically looking for that cause I took some Zolphidem for a while and developed tinnitus I immediately stopped and a few months later it went away thankfully
CG, that sounds awful. No pun intended. You’ve got it bad!
I must have a relatively minor case compared to yours. According to this website: https://www.szynalski.com/tone-generator/ my frequencies are between 6khz-12khz. Sort of a two-tone variation. Hit ‘play’ on the site and drag the slider back and forth until you hit your resonant frequencies.
I sleep with white noise - two fans and antique radio shows. Don’t wear hearing aids, though have hearing loss from military service. I keep ambient noise always during the daytime to mitigate.
The article is confusing though. Do SSRIs increase or decrease tinnitus?
Can anyone clarify?
CG, that sounds awful. No pun intended. You’ve got it bad!
I must have a relatively minor case compared to yours. According to this website: https://www.szynalski.com/tone-generator/ my frequencies are between 6khz-12khz. Sort of a two-tone variation. Hit ‘play’ on the site and drag the slider back and forth until you hit your resonant frequencies.
I sleep with white noise - two fans and antique radio shows. Don’t wear hearing aids, though have hearing loss from military service. I keep ambient noise always during the daytime to mitigate.
The article is confusing though. Do SSRIs increase or decrease tinnitus?
Can anyone clarify?
My tinnitus is linked to gunfire.
I heard William Shatner’s tinnitus was so bad, he contemplated killing himself. Not sure if he ever got it treated.
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