Cytoskeletal Basis for Contractility of Outer Hair Cells in the Normal Adult Human Organ of Corti: Comparisons with Vestibular Hair Cells

2015 ◽  
pp. 61-67
Author(s):  
M. Anniko ◽  
W. Arnold ◽  
T. Stigbrand ◽  
M. Takumida
Keyword(s):  
Hair Cells ◽  
Organ Of Corti ◽  
Outer Hair Cells ◽  
Normal Adult ◽  
Human Organ ◽  
Vestibular Hair Cells ◽  
Adult Human

scholarly journals Scanning Electron Microscopy of the Human Organ of Corti

1983 ◽  
Vol 76 (4) ◽  
pp. 269-278 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Wright
Keyword(s):  
Hair Cells ◽  
Organ Of Corti ◽  
Outer Hair Cells ◽  
Sensory Cells ◽  
Surface Appearance ◽  
Human Organ ◽  
Human Cochlea ◽  
Temporal Bones ◽  
Subsequent Staining ◽  
Scanning Electron

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 prepared 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.

Reciprocal Synapses at the Base of Outer Hair Cells in the Organ of Corti of Man

1981 ◽  
Vol 90 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph B. Nadol
Keyword(s):  
Hair Cell ◽  
Hair Cells ◽  
Outer Hair Cell ◽  
Organ Of Corti ◽  
Postsynaptic Membrane ◽  
Opposite Polarity ◽  
Outer Hair Cells ◽  
Human Organ ◽  
Single Nerve ◽  
Small Collection

Reciprocal synapses have been found between nerve terminals and the outer hair cells in the human organ of Corti. A single nerve ending of the nonvesiculated type may possess two types of synaptic specialization of opposite polarity. The first is typical of the “afferent” synapse with a presynaptic body in the hair cell and pre- and postsynaptic membrane thickening. The second consists of a small collection of presynaptic vesicles in the neural cytoplasm near the plasma membrane facing the hair cell and a subsynaptic cisterna within the hair cell cytoplasm. The second type of specialization is similar to the synapses seen in “efferent” endings. This suggests that both an afferent (hair cell to neuron) and efferent (neuron to hair cell) synaptic relationship may exist between an outer hair cell and a single nerve terminal.

Melatonin and other antioxidants prolong the postmortem activity of the outer hair cells of the organ of Corti: Its relation to the type of death

1999 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 73-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel A. Lopez-Gonzalez ◽  
Juan M. Guerrero ◽  
Francisco Rojas ◽  
Carmen Osuna ◽  
Francisco Delgado
Keyword(s):  
Hair Cells ◽  
Organ Of Corti ◽  
Outer Hair Cells

Ionic Currents and Electromotility in Inner Ear Hair Cells From Humans

1998 ◽  
Vol 79 (4) ◽  
pp. 2235-2239 ◽  
Author(s):  
John S. Oghalai ◽  
Jeffrey R. Holt ◽  
Takashi Nakagawa ◽  
Thomas M. Jung ◽  
Newton J. Coker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Inner Ear ◽  
Hair Cells ◽  
Ionic Currents ◽  
Sensory Epithelium ◽  
Outer Hair Cells ◽  
Sensory Receptor ◽  
Surgical Removal ◽  
Type I ◽  
Vestibular Hair Cells ◽  
Sensory Receptor Cells

Oghalai, John S., Jeffrey R. Holt, Takashi Nakagawa, Thomas M. Jung, Newton J. Coker, Herman A. Jenkins, Ruth Anne Eatock, and William E. Brownell. Ionic currents and electromotility in inner ear hair cells from humans. J. Neurophysiol. 79: 2235–2239, 1998. The upright posture and rich vocalizations of primates place demands on their senses of balance and hearing that differ from those of other animals. There is a wealth of behavioral, psychophysical, and CNS measures characterizing these senses in primates, but no prior recordings from their inner ear sensory receptor cells. We harvested human hair cells from patients undergoing surgical removal of life-threatening brain stem tumors and measured their ionic currents and electromotile responses. The hair cells were either isolated or left in situ in their sensory epithelium and investigated using the tight-seal, whole cell technique. We recorded from both type I and type II vestibular hair cells under voltage clamp and found four voltage-dependent currents, each of which has been reported in hair cells of other animals. Cochlear outer hair cells demonstrated electromotility in response to voltage steps like that seen in rodent animal models. Our results reveal many qualitative similarities to hair cells obtained from other animals and justify continued investigations to explore quantitative differences that may be associated with normal or pathological human sensation.

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