Membrane properties of cells comprising the OHC system

Corti的器官由多种类型的细胞组成，包括感觉细胞、支持细胞和神经细胞。综上所述，这些细胞组成了一个功能复杂且有凝聚力的电子单元，启动了我们环境中声学信息的分析。这个电单位是极其复杂的，几乎解剖难以接近，使整个分析相当具有挑战性。幸运的是，在过去几年中，体外方法，包括分离耳蜗和细胞制备，有助于阐明细胞功能；我们的策略是首先了解单个细胞，最后将这些知识整合到对Corti器官的全面了解中。本项目的总体目标是分析外毛细胞（OHC）的膜特性，主要使用全细胞电压钳技术的变化。提出了三个调查领域。具体而言，我们打算1)详细研究与氯离子通量有关的OHC侧膜的机械敏感性，2)研究氯离子和阴离子对OHC运动活性的影响，3)研究Corti制备外植体器官中OHC之间的机械耦合。我们将获得的结果将导致对内耳功能的更深入的了解，并有助于理解听觉病理，这可能是由OHC损伤和稳态失衡引起的，包括感音神经性听力损失和耳鸣。

The organ of Corti is composed of a variety of cell types including sensory, supporting and neural elements. Taken together, these cells comprise a functionally intricate and cohesive electrical unit that initiates the analysis of acoustic information within our environment. This electrical unit is extremely complex and nearly anatomically inaccessible, making an analysis of the whole quite a challenge. Fortunately, during the last several years the in vitro approach, including the isolated cochlea and cell preparations, has aided in the elucidation of cell function; the strategy is to understand the cells first on an individual basis, and finally to integrate this knowledge into a complete understanding of the organ of Corti. The overall aim of this project is to analyze the membrane properties of the outer hair cell (OHC), one of the major players in auditory function, principally using variations on the whole cell voltage clamp technique. Three areas of investigation are proposed. Specifically, we intend to 1) study in detail the mechanical sensitivity of the OHC lateral membrane as it relates to chloride flux, 2) study the effects of chloride and anions on the OHC motor activity, and 3) study mechanical coupling among OHCs in an explant organ of Corti preparation. The results that we will obtain will lead to a deeper understanding of inner ear function and aid in understanding auditory pathologies, which may result from OHC insult and homeostatic imbalance, including sensorineural hearing loss and tinnitus.