Presynaptic bodies of auditory hair cells in Old World monkeys.

Presynaptic bodies of auditory hair cells of Old World monkeys are separately differentiated in inner, as contrasted with outer, hair cells. The pre-synaptic bodies of outer cells are spherical and of variable electron density, and are thus similar to those of the labyrinth of vertebrates from fish to man. The difficulty in finding them, as compared with the relative ease of finding the presynaptic bodies of inner hair cells, suggests either that they are not present in all outer hair cells or that they undergo a regression-reconstitution cycle. The presynaptic bodies of simian inner hair cells are almost always ring-shaped. The few exceptions reinforce the impression of a later evolutionary development of the inner hair cell system. In any event, our findings serve to reemphasize the remarkable differentiation of outer and inner hair cell systems, and to deepen the mystery of their separate role in audition.