UCL Ear Institute, University College London, London, UK.
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA.
J Assoc Res Otolaryngol. 2023 Apr;24(2):117-127. doi: 10.1007/s10162-022-00852-4. Epub 2023 Jan 17.
In 1985, Bill Brownell and colleagues published the remarkable observation that cochlear outer hair cells (OHCs) express voltage-driven mechanical motion: electromotility. They proposed OHC electromotility as the mechanism for the elusive "cochlear amplifier" required to explain the sensitivity of mammalian hearing. The finding and hypothesis stimulated an explosion of experiments that have transformed our understanding of cochlear mechanics and physiology, the evolution of hair cell structure and function, and audiology. Here, we bring together examples of current research that illustrate the continuing impact of the discovery of OHC electromotility.
1985 年,比尔·布朗内尔(Bill Brownell)及其同事发表了一项引人注目的观察结果,指出耳蜗外毛细胞(OHC)表达电压驱动的机械运动:电致动。他们提出 OHC 电致动作为解释哺乳动物听力灵敏度所需的难以捉摸的“耳蜗放大器”的机制。这一发现和假设激发了大量实验,这些实验改变了我们对耳蜗力学和生理学、毛细胞结构和功能的进化以及听力学的理解。在这里,我们汇集了当前研究的例子,这些例子说明了 OHC 电致动的发现所产生的持续影响。