Synaptic Physiology in the Isolated Mammalian Cochlea

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The cochlea is the receptor organ for hearing in mammals. One group of its mechanosensory cells, the inner hair cells, make unique functional synaptic contacts with auditory sensory neurons that carry information to the brain. Unlike many other synaptic sites, in the mammalian cochlea a single active zone of one inner hair cell usually constitutes the entire synaptic input to the afferent neurons, unlike the extensive branching common elsewhere. This exploratory project will develop a novel isolated preparation of the mammalian cochlea to exploit the unique opportunity to study the physiology of a single synaptic active zone. Results will be important to our understanding of synaptic mechanisms, and the isolated preparation will provide an important new approach with impact on auditory neuroscience.