Personal profile
Research Interests
Research Topics
Computational Biology, Imaging, Neurobiology, Optogenetics, Sensory Processing
Disease Research Interests
Aging Related Diseases, Neurological and Behavioral Disorders
Professional Information
The role of top-down projections in the processing of complex sounds
Our laboratory studies the mechanisms by which complex sounds, such as speech, are processed by the auditory system. We hypothesize that the auditory system generates internal models of the sensory world, and uses these models to extract meaning from complex sensory stimuli. One potential neuronal substrate for this generative model is the massive system of descending projections from the auditory cortex to virtually every level of the subcortical auditory system. These projections are critical for shaping the response properties of neurons in the auditory periphery, but very little is known about their functional organization.
We employ electrophysiological, novel optical and advanced anatomical approaches to study the projections from the auditory cortex to subcortical structures. One specific set of issues that we address concerns the role of different cortical subnetworks in complex sound processing. For example, neurons in both cortical layer 5 and cortical layer 6 project to subcortical structures, and the neurons in these layers have very different intrinsic, integrative and synaptic properties. Our work explores the different roles that these groups of neurons play in the processing of complex sound.
Clinical/Translational
My patient care work is focused on aging and neurodegenerative disease. Consequently, our laboratory has an interest aging-related auditory network dysfunction, particularly as it relates to changes in network properties in the auditory thalamus and cortex.
Honors & Awards
Excellence in Teaching Recognition, 2012-2019, 2021
Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), 2019
Helen Corley Petit Scholar, 2017
Benjamin R. and Elinor W. Bullock and Edwin E. and Jeanne Bullock
Goldberg Professorial Scholar, 2017
Advances in Medicine Award, Carle Hospital, 2016
Golden Apple Teaching Award, 2015
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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A case–control neuroimaging investigation of chronic Zika virus-infected adults
Jun, S., Bido-Medina, R., Oviedo, J., Miches, I., Llano, D., Tusen, L., Stoeter, P., Rodriguez, M. & Sadaghiani, S., 2026, In: Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. 20, 1710905.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
A Protocol for Microprism-Based Two-Photon Imaging Of The Lateral Cortex In The Mouse Inferior Colliculus
Ibrahim, B. A. & Llano, D. A., Jan 2026, In: Current Protocols in Microbiology. 6, 1, e70286.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Atypical Initial Manifestation of Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease as Progressive Aphasia and Palinopsia: A Case Report
Alammar, H., Moreno, A., Wissinger, L. & Llano, D. A., Apr 16 2026, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Differential Myeloarchitecture of Subfields of the Mammalian Auditory Cortex: A Comparative Approach
Singh, S. & Llano, D. A., 2026, (Accepted/In press) In: Brain, behavior and evolution. p. 1-22 22 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review
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Combined Nanodrops Imaging and Ultrasound Localization Microscopy for Detecting Intracerebral Hemorrhage
Lin, B. Z., Fan, A. C., Wang, Y., Lowerison, M. R., Dong, Z., You, Q., Sekaran, N. V. C., Llano, D., Borden, M. & Song, P., Apr 2025, In: Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology. 51, 4, p. 707-714 8 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access
Honors & Recognition
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Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE)
Llano, D. A. (Recipient), 2019
Prize: Prize/Award