A study from Johns Hopkins University suggests that adult-onset hearing loss can produce a selective improvement in peripheral vision in mice. Published in The Journal of Neuroscience, the research found that the visual cortex did not compensate for lost auditory input by broadly increasing its activity. Instead, neural responses to peripheral visual stimuli became weaker and more selective.
The team, led by Hey-Kyoung Lee at Johns Hopkins University’s Zanvyl Krieger Mind/Brain Institute and Department of Neuroscience, studied adult mice with progressive hearing loss. Using two-photon calcium imaging and electrophysiological recordings, the researchers measured activity in layer 2/3 of the primary visual cortex while presenting stimuli in either the central or peripheral visual field.
Responses to objects in the animals’ central field of view remained largely unchanged. By contrast, activity associated with peripheral visual inputs was significantly attenuated, particularly in the medial region of the visual cortex that represents the peripheral monocular field.
Behavioral testing showed that the reduced neural activity did not correspond to poorer vision. Mice with adult-onset hearing loss detected fine peripheral visual details more accurately than mice with normal hearing. Their focal visual acuity was unchanged, and the study’s abstract reports no change in contrast sensitivity when the animals detected moving gratings.
The researchers interpret the quieter responses as evidence of more efficient neural coding. By reducing redundant or broadly distributed activity, the visual cortex may represent peripheral information with greater precision rather than simply increasing the strength of its signals.
The findings challenge the common assumption that cross-modal compensation after sensory loss relies mainly on heightened neural activity. They also indicate that adult neuroplasticity may be selective, improving some visual functions without affecting others. Peripheral vision is important for detecting movement, navigating surroundings and responding to potential hazards, although the study was conducted in mice.
The researchers plan to investigate the synaptic and inhibitory interneuron mechanisms responsible for the change in visual-cortex activity. The paper, titled “Adult-Onset Auditory Deprivation Enhances Attenuation of Neural Responses in the Visual Cortex and Improves Peripheral Visual Acuity,” lists Katie H. T. Pham, Lukas Mesik, Rachel Lee and colleagues as authors and has the DOI 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0690-26.2026.
Sources: Neuroscience News.