Wang Xun, Shen Yuqian, Liu Dong
Nantong Laboratory of Development and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, Co-Innovation Center of Neuroregeneration, Nantong University, Nantong 226001, China.
Int J Mol Sci. 2025 Aug 31;26(17):8480. doi: 10.3390/ijms26178480.
Hearing is essential for animal survival and social communication, relying on the function of sensory hair cells. These cells possess organized stereocilia bundles enriched with mechano-electrical transduction (MET) channels that convert mechanical stimuli into electrical signals. Tip links, fine extracellular filaments connecting adjacent stereocilia, play a critical role in transmitting mechanical forces to MET channels. Over the past three decades, technological advances have significantly enhanced our understanding of the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying auditory transduction. Zebrafish, with its conserved hair cell structure and function similar to mammals, has become a valuable model in auditory research. The aim of this review is to summarize the research progress on the molecular and cellular mechanisms of MET, tip link, and stereocilia complex, with an emphasis on zebrafish studies, providing an important reference for understanding diseases of the human auditory system.
听力对于动物的生存和社交交流至关重要，它依赖于感觉毛细胞的功能。这些细胞拥有富含机械电转导（MET）通道的有组织的静纤毛束，这些通道将机械刺激转化为电信号。顶连接是连接相邻静纤毛的精细细胞外细丝，在将机械力传递给MET通道方面起着关键作用。在过去三十年中，技术进步显著增进了我们对听觉转导潜在分子和细胞机制的理解。斑马鱼具有与哺乳动物相似的保守毛细胞结构和功能，已成为听觉研究中的一个有价值的模型。这篇综述的目的是总结MET、顶连接和静纤毛复合体分子和细胞机制的研究进展，重点是斑马鱼研究，为理解人类听觉系统疾病提供重要参考。
