Article abstract
Nature Neuroscience 10, 215 - 223 (2007)
Published online: 14 January 2007 | doi:10.1038/nn1828
Sharpened cochlear tuning in a mouse with a genetically modified tectorial membrane
Ian J Russell1, P Kevin Legan1, Victoria A Lukashkina1, Andrei N Lukashkin1, Richard J Goodyear1 & Guy P Richardson1
Abstract
Frequency tuning in the cochlea is determined by the passive mechanical properties of the basilar membrane and active feedback from the outer hair cells, sensory-effector cells that detect and amplify sound-induced basilar membrane motions. The sensory hair bundles of the outer hair cells are imbedded in the tectorial membrane, a sheet of extracellular matrix that overlies the cochlea's sensory epithelium. The tectorial membrane contains radially organized collagen fibrils that are imbedded in an unusual striated-sheet matrix formed by two glycoproteins, 
-tectorin (Tecta) and 
-tectorin (Tectb). In Tectb-/- mice the structure of the striated-sheet matrix is disrupted. Although these mice have a low-frequency hearing loss, basilar-membrane and neural tuning are both significantly enhanced in the high-frequency regions of the cochlea, with little loss in sensitivity. These findings can be attributed to a reduction in the acting mass of the tectorial membrane and reveal a new function for this structure in controlling interactions along the cochlea.
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton, BN1 9QG, UK.
Correspondence to: Ian J Russell1 e-mail: I.J.Russell@sussex.ac.uk
Correspondence to: Guy P Richardson1 e-mail: G.P.Richardson@sussex.ac.uk
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