Department of Psychology, University of Washington, 413 Guthrie Hall, Box 351525, Seattle, WA 98195, United States.
Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105, United States; Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, United States.
Hear Res. 2021 Apr;403:108189. doi: 10.1016/j.heares.2021.108189. Epub 2021 Jan 29.
Age-related hearing loss (ARHL), also known as presbycusis, is a widespread and debilitating condition impacting many older adults. Conventionally, researchers utilize mammalian model systems or human cadaveric tissue to study ARHL pathology. Recently, the zebrafish has become an effective and tractable model system for a wide variety of genetic and environmental auditory insults, but little is known about the incidence or extent of ARHL in zebrafish and other non-mammalian models. Here, we evaluated whether zebrafish exhibit age-related loss in auditory sensitivity. The auditory sensitivity of adult wild-type zebrafish (AB/WIK strain) from three adult age subgroups (13-month, 20-month, and 37-month) was characterized using the auditory evoked potential (AEP) recording technique. AEPs were elicited using pure tone stimuli (115-4500 Hz) presented via an underwater loudspeaker and recorded using shielded subdermal metal electrodes. Based on measures of sound pressure and particle acceleration, the mean AEP thresholds of 37-month-old fish [mean sound pressure level (SPL) = 122.2 dB ± 2.2 dB SE re: 1 μPa; mean particle acceleration level (PAL) = -27.5 ± 2.3 dB SE re: 1 ms] were approximately 9 dB higher than that of 20-month-old fish [(mean SPL = 113.1 ± 2.7 dB SE re: 1 μPa; mean PAL = -37.2 ± 2.8 dB re: 1 ms; p = 0.007)] and 6 dB higher than that of 13-month-old fish [(mean SPL = 116.3 ± 2.5 dB SE re: 1 μPa; mean PAL = -34.1 ± 2.6 dB SE re: 1 ms; p = 0.052)]. Lowest AEP thresholds for all three age groups were generally between 800 Hz and 1850 Hz, with no evidence for frequency-specific age-related loss. Our results suggest that zebrafish undergo age-related loss in auditory sensitivity, but the form and magnitude of loss is markedly different than in mammals, including humans. Future work is needed to further describe the incidence and extent of ARHL across vertebrate groups and to determine which, if any, ARHL mechanisms may be conserved across vertebrates to support meaningful comparative/translational studies.
年龄相关性听力损失（ARHL），也称为老年性聋，是一种广泛存在且使人虚弱的疾病，影响着许多老年人。传统上，研究人员利用哺乳动物模型系统或人类尸体组织来研究 ARHL 病理学。最近，斑马鱼已成为研究各种遗传和环境听觉损伤的有效且易于处理的模型系统，但对于斑马鱼和其他非哺乳动物模型中的 ARHL 的发生率或程度知之甚少。在这里，我们评估了斑马鱼是否表现出与年龄相关的听觉敏感性丧失。使用听觉诱发电位（AEP）记录技术，对来自三个成年年龄亚组（13 个月、20 个月和 37 个月）的成年野生型斑马鱼（AB/WIK 品系）的听觉敏感性进行了特征描述。通过水下扬声器呈现纯音刺激（115-4500 Hz）来诱发 AEPs，并使用屏蔽的皮下金属电极进行记录。基于声压和质点加速度的测量，37 月龄鱼的平均 AEP 阈值[平均声压级（SPL）= 122.2 dB ± 2.2 dB SE 相对于 1 μPa；平均质点加速度级（PAL）= -27.5 ± 2.3 dB SE 相对于 1 ms]比 20 月龄鱼的平均 AEP 阈值[平均 SPL = 113.1 ± 2.7 dB SE 相对于 1 μPa；平均 PAL = -37.2 ± 2.8 dB SE 相对于 1 ms；p = 0.007]高约 9 dB，比 13 月龄鱼的平均 AEP 阈值[平均 SPL = 116.3 ± 2.5 dB SE 相对于 1 μPa；平均 PAL = -34.1 ± 2.6 dB SE 相对于 1 ms；p = 0.052]高约 6 dB。所有三个年龄组的最低 AEP 阈值通常在 800 Hz 和 1850 Hz 之间，没有证据表明存在与频率相关的与年龄相关的损失。我们的研究结果表明，斑马鱼经历了与年龄相关的听觉敏感性丧失，但丧失的形式和程度与哺乳动物（包括人类）明显不同。需要进一步研究来描述脊椎动物群体中 ARHL 的发生率和程度，并确定哪些 ARHL 机制可能在脊椎动物中被保守，以支持有意义的比较/转化研究。
