Biophysical Mechanisms Underlying Auditory Transduction

耳朵是一个非凡的探测器：它既高度敏感又有选择性，并且在超过12个数量级的大动态范围内工作。然而，对耳朵进行直接的生理学研究一直很困难，因此我们对耳朵中工作的[基于细胞的复杂阵列]放大机制知之甚少。听力障碍通常是由于这些过程的问题而产生的，并影响了相当一部分加拿大人的生活质量。幸运的是，我们可以利用耳朵的另一个非凡特性：它不仅对声音做出反应，而且还能发出声音。这些声音被称为耳声发射（OAE），可以自发产生或由外部刺激诱发，并且可以使用灵敏的麦克风在耳道中进行非侵入性测量。OAE在科学和临床环境中都取得了巨大成功（例如，筛选听力障碍）和进一步的研究将有助于明确我们对耳朵放大的基本生物物理学的理解。

The ear is a remarkable detector: It is both highly sensitive and selective, and operates over a large dynamic range spanning more than 12 orders of magnitude. Direct physiological study of the ear however has been difficult, and thus there is much we do not know about the [complex array of cellular-based] amplification mechanisms at work in the ear. Hearing impairment commonly arises due to problems with these processes and affects the quality of life for a significant fraction of Canadians. Fortunately, we can make use of another extraordinary property of the ear: Not only does it respond to sound but emits it as well. These sounds, known as otoacoustic emissions (OAEs), can arise either spontaneously or be evoked by an external stimulus and are measurable non-invasively in the ear canal using a sensitive microphone. OAEs have been employed with great success in both scientific and clinical contexts (e.g., screening for hearing impairment) and further study will help crystallize our understanding of the fundamental biophysics underlying amplification in the ear.