PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “ORGAN OF CORTI”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 415 records · Page 23Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Cytoskeletal integration in a highly ordered sensory epithelium in the organ of Corti: reponse to loss of cell partners in the Bronx waltzer mouse.

This report is concerned with control of cell shaping, positioning, and cytoskeletal integration in a highly ordered cochlear neuroepithelium. It is largely based on investigations of events that occur during abnormal morphogenesis of the organ of Corti in the Bronx waltzer (bv/bv) mutant mouse. The organ's sensory hair cells and adjacent supporting cells ordinarily construct a spatially elaborate and supracellularly integrated cytoskeletal framework. Large microtubule bundles are connected to cytoskeletal components in neighbouring cells by actin-containing meshworks that link them to substantial arrays of adherens junctions. In bv/bv mice, degeneration and loss of most inner hair cells and outer pillar cells occurs during organ development. These cells flank each side of a row of inner pillar cells that respond by upregulating assembly of their actin-containing meshworks. This only occurs in surface regions where they no longer contact cell types involved in construction of the cytoskeletal framework. The meshworks are larger and exhibit a more extensive sub-surface deployment than is normally the case. Hence, assembly of intercellular cytoskeletal connecting components can proceed without contact with appropriate cell neighbours but termination of assembly is apparently subject to a negative feedback control triggered by successful completion of intercellular connection with the correct cell neighbours. In addition, inner pillar cells compensate for loss of cell neighbours by interdigitating and overlapping each other more extensively than is usually the case to increase opportunities for generating adherens junctions. Certain adherens junctions in the organs of +/+ and bv/bv mice exhibit features that distinguish them from all previously described cell junctions. The dense plaques on their cytoplasmic faces are composed of aligned ridges. We suggest that they are called ribbed adherens junctions. Perturbations of cell shaping and positioning indicate that loss of inner hair cells is the primary consequence of the bv mutation. Most of the other abnormalities can be understood in terms of a secondary sequence of morphogenetic aberrations (precipitated by loss of inner hair cells). These aberrations provide new information about the ways in which supporting cells help to control hair cell positioning.

Adherens Junctions↗
PubMed2004

Early gene expression in the organ of Corti exposed to gentamicin.

Studies have demonstrated different pathogenetic key factors in gentamicin-induced hair cell death. The production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), as well as apoptosis-related genes, play a critical role. However, a coordinated large-scale investigation of gene expression in the organ of Corti (OC) exposed to gentamicin has not yet been conducted. Here we used DNA microarray technology to compare the expression profile of OC exposed to gentamicin to the expression profile of untreated OC. The OCs of Sprague Dawley rats were dissected and the basal turns were cultured. Two-thirds of the explants were then exposed to l00 microM gentamicin, for 4 and 8 h, while one-third of the explants remained in culture medium alone. Gene expression was analyzed using DNA microarray technology and the dChip software package. Based on the results, the 4-h time-point was chosen for further analysis. In these assays, out of 8800 genes, 12 genes were identified on the basis of differential expression in the OC exposed to gentamicin vs. control OC. The identity of these genes suggests that the response of the OC to the gentamicin challenge involves down-regulation of specific gene families in order to alleviate ROS and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor-mediated cellular stress.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Protective effect of calcium channel blocker verapamil on morphological and functional state of hair cells of the organ of corti in experimental kanamycin-induced ototoxicity.

The protective effect of verapamil against acute ototoxic sensorineural damage produced by intraperitoneal injections of kanamycin (50 mg/kg daily for 14 day) was studied on rats. The functional (otoacoustic emission), histological, and physiological methods proved the protective effect of daily injections of calcium channel blocker verapamil (2 mg/kg) on the state of hair cells of the organ of Corti.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Oncomodulin is expressed exclusively by outer hair cells in the organ of Corti.

Oncomodulin (OM) is a small, acidic calcium-binding protein first discovered in a rat hepatoma and later found in placental cytotrophoblasts, the pre-implantation embryo, and in a wide variety of neoplastic tissues. OM was considered to be exclusively an oncofetal protein until its recent detection in extracts of the adult guinea pig's organ of Corti. Here we report that light and electron microscopic immunostaining of gerbil, rat, and mouse inner ears with a monoclonal antibody against recombinant rat OM localizes the protein exclusively in cochlear outer hair cells (OHCs). At the ultrastructural level, high gold labeling density was seen overlying the nucleus, cytoplasm, and the cuticular plate of gerbil OHCs. Few, if any, gold particles were present over intracellular organelles and the stereocilia. Staining of a wide range of similarly processed gerbil organs failed to detect immunoreactive OM in any other adult tissues. The mammalian genome encodes one alpha- and one beta-isoform of parvalbumin (PV). The widely distributed alpha PV exhibits a very high affinity for Ca2+ and is believed to serve as a Ca2+ buffer. By contrast, OM, the mammalian beta PV, displays a highly attenuated affinity for Ca2+, consistent with a Ca2+-dependent regulatory function. The exclusive association of OM with cochlear OHCs in mature tissues is likely to have functional relevance. Teleological considerations favor its involvement in regulating some aspect of OHC electromotility. Although the fast electromotile response of OHCs does not require Ca2+, its gain and magnitude are modulated by efferent innervation. Therefore, OM may be involved in mediation of intracellular responses to cholinergic stimulation, which are known to be Ca2+ regulated. (J Histochem Cytochem 46:29-39, 1998)

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Active radial and transverse motile responses of outer hair cells in the organ of Corti.

In isolated outer hair cells (OHCs) electrically induced movements of high frequencies have been described. The experiments, however, gave no information whether fast OHC motility exists in situ. In the present report, we developed a technique to prepare viable half turn explants from the guinea-pig cochlea which could be kept as organ culture. Several video imaging methods and pixel-by-pixel, digital-image subtractions allowed simultaneous observations and quantitative measurements at video rates of 688 x 512 localizations of investigated segments of the organ of Corti (OC). When living cochlea explants were exposed to an electrical a.c. field, the OHCs in the OC followed this field by shortenings and elongations of their cell bodies and by radial movements of their cuticular plates (CP). This was accompanied by radial displacements of the hair bundles. In the apical turns video stroboscopy allowed recording of in situ movements of OHCs up to auditory frequencies. In all experiments motile responses were most prominent in the three rows of the OHCs. No or less pronounced passive motile responses could be observed at the tunnel of Corti (TC) and in the inner hair cells (IHCs). Mechanical decoupling of OHCs and IHCs at the TC resulted in a loss of IHC movements, whereas OHCs were uneffected. Motility was detectable in the presence of physiological salt solutions (300 mOsm/l) and in iso-osmolar mannitol or sorbitol solutions. The electrically induced motile responses were not suppressed in the presence of dinitrophenol or cytochalasin B. Thus, the present report shows active transverse and radial motile responses of OHCs in the OC, which are electro-mechanical in situ processes. The results indicate how outer hair cell electromotility may influence hearing when it occurs within the mechanical framework of the OC.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

On the Deiters cell contribution to the micromechanics of the organ of Corti.

We give the first estimate of Young's modulus of the proteinaceous beam that makes the stiffness of the Deiters cell phalangeal processes. We show that the fundamental mode of vibration of an isolated phalanx is overdamped due to the damping imposed by the surrounding fluid. Then we consider the mechanical couplings that have so far been neglected in the micromechanics of the organ of Corti. Conclusions are drawn concerning the lack of significance of some expected resonant behaviour of isolated outer hair cells.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Demonstration of the fine structure of stereocilia in the organ of Corti of the guinea pig by field emission scanning electron microscopy.

A combined perfusion- and immersion prefixation with glutaraldehyde followed by a tannic acid/arginine/osmium tetroxide (TAO) treatment of the guinea pig cochlea is described for field-emission gun scanning electron microscopy (FEG-SEM) observation of the fine structure of the stereocilia of the organ of Corti. Conventional osmium tetroxide postfixation methods in combination with a thin conductive coating failed to show the fine structure of the glycocalyx of the epithelial lining in the endolymphatic compartment of the cochlea, in particular, on the stereocilia surface. The antennulae-like glycocalyx covering of the stereocilia surface of the more pronounced rows of outer hair cells has been demonstrated only in ultrathin sections by means of cationic markers. The side- and tip-links connecting the stereocilia have been demonstrated both in scanning and transmission electron microscopy, although at that time these structures often were considered as artificial. However, they can be visualized with FEG-SEM at low accelerating voltage (2-3 kV), and at appropriate working distance and probe current, in combination with a glutaraldehyde perfusion/immersion prefixation and TAO postfixation. Stereo images enhance considerably the three-dimensional appreciation of the stereocilia with glycocalyx lining and side- and tip-links, proving that these connections are a structural part of the hair cell.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Mechanical properties of sensory and supporting cells in the organ of Corti of the guinea pig cochlea--study by atomic force microscopy.

Mammalian hearing is refined by amplification of the motion of the cochlear partition. To understand the cochlear amplification, mechanical models of the cochlea have been used. When the dynamic behavior of the cochlea is analyzed by a model, elastic properties of the cells in the organ of Corti must be determined in advance. Recently, elastic properties of outer hair cells (OHCs) and pillar cells have been elucidated. However, those of other cells have not yet been clarified. Therefore, in this study, using an atomic force microscope (AFM), elastic properties of Hensen's cells, Deiters' cells and inner hair cells (IHCs) in the apical turn and those in the basal and second turns were estimated. As a result, slopes indicative of cell elastic properties were (8.9 +/- 5.8) x 10(3) m(-1) for Hensen's cells (n = 30), (5.5 +/- 5.3) x 10(3) m(-1) for Deiters' cells (n = 20) and (3.8 +/- 2.6) x 10(3) m(-1) for IHCs (n = 20), and Young's modulus were 0.69 +/- 0.45 kPa for Hensen's cells and 0.29 +/- 0.20 kPa for IHCs. There was no significant difference between elastic properties of each type of cell in the apical turn and those in the basal and second turns. However, it was found that there is a significant difference between Young's moduli of cells estimated in this study and those of the OHCs and pillar cells reported previously.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Characterization of atypical cells in the juvenile rat organ of corti after aminoglycoside ototoxicity.

Hair cell regeneration is well documented in the inner ear sensory epithelia of lower vertebrates and birds and may occur in the vestibular organs of mammals. By contrast, hair cell loss in the mature mammalian cochlea is considered irreversible. However, recent reports have suggested that an attempt at hair cell regeneration could occur in vivo in aminoglycoside-lesioned cochleas from neonatal rats. After amikacin treatment, atypical cells with apical specialization reminiscent of early differentiating stereocilia are transiently present at the apex of the intoxicated cochleas but fail to differentiate as hair cells in later stages. In the present study, we used electronic microscopy, histochemistry, and confocal microscopy to investigate the cellular rearrangements in the amikacin-lesioned organ of Corti of rat pups. In addition, we used 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine immunocytochemistry to determine whether mitotic processes are involved in the formation of the atypical cells. The morphologic and molecular data suggest that atypical cells are not recovering hair cells, but share characteristics of immature hair cells and supporting cells. Proliferative cells were absent from the region occupied by atypical cells, suggesting that the latter did not arise through mitotic processes. Altogether, the present results support the hypothesis that atypical cells arise through direct transformation of some of the supporting cells that reorganize during hair cell degeneration.

Amikacin↗
PubMed1976

Atoxyl-induced damage to the sensory cells in the organ of Corti in the guinea pig cochlea.

Atoxyl-induced damage to the inner and the outer hair cells in the guinea pig cochlea starts in the apical coil and spreads successively downward toward the round window. Vesicular degeneration of both the inner and the outer hair cells and the cell organelles occurs. The degeneration is probably caused by an alteration in ionic composition of the endolymph resulting from primary changes of the stria vascularis (vesiculation and rejection of degenerated marginal and intermediate cells) as reported by Anniko and Wersäll (1975). However, a direct action of atoxyl on the sensory cells of the organ of Corti cannot be excluded.

Aniline Compounds↗
PubMed2003

Evidence for a possible NOS back-up system in the organ of Corti of the guinea pig.

Recently, the two Ca(2+)/calmodulin-regulated nitric oxide synthase isoforms, nNOS and eNOS, and NO itself have been identified in the cochlea of vertebrates using specific antibodies and a new fluorescence indicator. In order to acquire more information about the quantitative and spatial distribution of these two constitutively expressed NOS isoforms (cNOS) in the organ of Corti at the cellular and subcelluar levels, ultrathin sections of London resin (LR) White-embedded cochleae of the guinea pig were incubated with various concentrations of commercially available antibodies to nNOS and eNOS. The immunoreactivity was visualized by a gold-labeled secondary antibody and the amount of the immunoreactions/microm(2) was quantified for different cell types and subcellular regions. Both NOS isoforms were identified to varying degrees in the same cell types and subcellular regions. A prominent eNOS immunoreactivity was identified in nearly every cell type. In all analyzed animals the highest number of gold-coupled anti-eNOS antibodies was always seen in the cells of the reticular lamina, especially in the cuticular structures of outer and inner hair cells, pillar cells and apical Deiters' cells. Also the microtubuli-containing cytoplasmic regions of Deiters' cells were scattered with gold-coupled anti-eNOS antibodies. A clear eNOS immunoreaction was also found in the remaining cytoplasm of inner and outer hair cells and in the apical Deiters' cells. Numerous anti-nNOS antibodies were located in the outer hair cells and in the cuticular structures of the apical Deiters' cells. The amount of the gold-labeled anti-nNOS antibodies in the cuticular plates of the pillar cells and outer hair cells and in the cytoplasm of inner hair cells and apical Deiters' cells were clearly less but still above unspecific background labeling. The spatial co-localization of the two NOS isotypes in the same cell regions was proven in double-labeling experiments. The spatial distribution of the two cNOS isoforms confirmed recent findings of other authors who localized NO distribution and production sites. The cNOS co-expression with similar function in the same cell type and subcellular regions may represent a functional "back-up system" in which one NOS isoform can replace the other in case of pathophysiological malfunction.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Scanning electron microscopy of the human organ of Corti.

The human cochlea has been preserved from post-mortem autolysis by perfusion with a fixative shortly after death. Subsequent staining with osmium permits dissection of this structure from the temporal bone. (Temporal bones were obtained from eight patients). When prepare for examination in the scanning electron microscope, the auditory sensory cells are found to be located in the band-like organ of Corti which extends the length of the cochlea. The sensory cells have a cluster of stereocilia projecting from their free upper surface and because of this are called hair cells. The hair cells are divided into two separate groups: a single row of inner hair cells, which show little variation in their surface appearance along the length of the cochlea, and three or four rows of outer hair cells whose cilia change in conformation and increase in length along the cochlea.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Morphological evaluation of the organ of Corti in the guinea pig subjected to acoustic trauma. I. Surface preparation study].

Adult guinea pigs (250-500 g) were exposed to a chronic wide-band noise, at intensities ranging from 117 and 133 dB(A) at different times. The objective of this first part of the study is, after the lesions are established, to classify and put into order the structural damage produced by noise, using surface preparations observed with the light microscope and specimens prepared for scanning electron microscopy, from the organ of Corti.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Kanamycin alters cytoplasmic and nuclear phosphoinositide signaling in the organ of Corti in vivo.

Aminoglycoside antibiotics strongly bind to phosphoinositides and affect their membrane distribution and metabolism. Kanamycin treatment also disrupts Rac/Rho signaling pathways to the actin cytoskeleton in the mouse inner ear in vivo. Here, we investigate the influence of kanamycin on phosphoinositide signaling in sensory cells (hair cells) of the mouse cochlea. Immunoreactivity to phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-trisphosphate (PIP3) decreased in the organ of Corti, especially in outer hair cells, after 3-7 days of drug treatment, whereas imunoreactivity to phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) increased. Immunoreactivity to PIP2 was present at the apical poles of outer hair cells, but appeared in their nuclei only after drug treatment. Furthermore, nuclear PIP2 formed a complex with histone H3 and attenuated its acetylation in outer hair cells. In agreement with reduced PIP3 signaling, phosphorylated Akt decreased in both the cytoplasm and nuclei of outer hair cells after kanamycin treatment. This study suggests that kanamycin disturbs the balance between PIP2 and PIP3, modifies gene transcription via histone acetylation and diminishes the PI3K/Akt survival pathway. These actions may contribute to the death of outer hair cells, which is a consequence of chronic kanamycin treatment.

Animals↗