Tsuprun V, Santi P
Department of Otolaryngology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis 55455, USA.
J Assoc Res Otolaryngol. 2000 Nov;1(3):224-31. doi: 10.1007/s101620010010.
Outer-hair-cell stereocilia tip-link structure in the chinchilla cochlea was studied by transmission electron microscopy using tannic acid and Ruthenium red/ Alcian blue histochemical procedures. Tannic acid and Ruthenium red/Alcian blue treatments showed the tip link as a compact strand of filaments 9-12 nm thick. Fourier analysis of tip-link images showed that the strand is a three-start helical bundle of fine, coiled filaments which had an axial period of 22.5+/-1.5 nm. Each of three coiled filaments in the strand showed globular structures, 4.3+/-0.3 nm in diameter. The globular structures may correspond to individual protein subunits or they may be repeating identical domains of one polypeptide. The three filaments of the helical array may provide a rigidity to the tip link during stereocilia deflections. Alternatively, changes in the subunit or domain structure of each filament may result in a lengthening or shortening of the tip-link strand.
利用单宁酸以及钌红/阿尔辛蓝组织化学方法，通过透射电子显微镜对灰鼠耳蜗外毛细胞静纤毛的顶端连接结构进行了研究。单宁酸以及钌红/阿尔辛蓝处理显示顶端连接为一条紧密的细丝束，厚度为9 - 12纳米。对顶端连接图像的傅里叶分析表明，该细丝束是由细的螺旋状细丝构成的三股螺旋束，其轴向周期为22.5±1.5纳米。细丝束中的三股螺旋状细丝每股都显示出直径为4.3±0.3纳米的球状结构。这些球状结构可能对应于单个蛋白质亚基，或者它们可能是一条多肽链中重复的相同结构域。螺旋阵列的三股细丝在静纤毛偏转过程中可能为顶端连接提供刚性。或者，每股细丝的亚基或结构域结构的变化可能导致顶端连接细丝束的延长或缩短。
