Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals Case Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio 44106, USA.
Laryngoscope. 2010 Jan;120(1):159-65. doi: 10.1002/lary.20673.
OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: Neuronal toxicity is thought to be important in Meniere's disease and experimental endolymphatic hydrops (ELH). This study quantifies the relationship between neuronal degeneration and hair cell degeneration in ELH to evaluate the hypothesis that a primary neural insult would yield greater loss in the spiral ganglion than at the inner hair cell level.
Following induction and histopathologic confirmation of endolymphatic hydrops in guinea pigs, the degree of hydrops, spiral ganglion loss, and hair cell degeneration were quantified and compared.
Guinea pigs with surgically induced unilateral hydrops were sacrificed and their cochleas preserved. Hydrops severity and spiral ganglion density were quantified using automated methods. Hair cells were counted manually. Values were normalized against the contralateral ear to create loss indexes.
Inner hair cell (IHC) loss at the apex is significantly lower than corresponding neuronal loss. IHC loss at the base is also lower than neuron loss, although not significantly. Regression analysis shows a significant, positive correlation between neuron loss severity and IHC loss severity at the apex, but not at the base. There is no correlation between hydrops severity and inner hair cell loss.
By confirming that spiral ganglion loss is more severe than hair cell loss, and that hair cell loss appears to worsen with neuronal degeneration, this study supports the theory that neuronal toxicity is the primary insult in ELH-related disorders, such as Meniere's disease, and may provide the basis for designing treatment strategies.
目的/假设：神经元毒性被认为在梅尼埃病和实验性内淋巴积水（ELH）中很重要。本研究量化了 ELH 中神经元变性和毛细胞变性之间的关系，以评估以下假设，即主要的神经损伤会导致螺旋神经节的损失大于内毛细胞水平的损失。
在豚鼠中诱导并组织病理学证实内淋巴积水后，量化并比较了积水程度、螺旋神经节损失和毛细胞变性。
通过手术诱导单侧积水的豚鼠被处死，并保存其耳蜗。使用自动化方法量化积水严重程度和螺旋神经节密度。手动计数毛细胞。将值与对侧耳朵进行归一化以创建损失指数。
顶点处的内毛细胞（IHC）损失明显低于相应的神经元损失。基底处的 IHC 损失也低于神经元损失，尽管差异不显著。回归分析显示，神经元损失严重程度与顶点处 IHC 损失严重程度之间存在显著的正相关，但基底处则没有。积水严重程度与内毛细胞损失之间没有相关性。
通过证实螺旋神经节损失比毛细胞损失更严重，并且毛细胞损失似乎随着神经元变性而恶化，本研究支持神经元毒性是 ELH 相关疾病（如梅尼埃病）中主要损伤的理论，并可能为设计治疗策略提供基础。
