Huang G, Santos-Sacchi J
Section of Otolaryngology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06510.
Biophys J. 1993 Nov;65(5):2228-36. doi: 10.1016/S0006-3495(93)81248-7.
The outer hair cell (OHC) possesses a nonlinear charge movement whose characteristics indicate that it represents the voltage sensor responsible for OHC mechanical activity. OHC mechanical activity is known to exist along a restricted extent of the cell's length. We have used a simultaneous partitioning microchamber and whole cell voltage clamp technique to electrically isolate sections of the OHC membrane and find that the nonlinear charge movement is also restricted along the cell's length. Apical and basal portions of the OHC are devoid of voltage sensors, corresponding to regions of the cell where the subsurface cisternae and/or the mechanical responses are absent. We conclude that the physical domain of the motility voltage sensor corresponds to that of the mechanical effector and speculate that sensor and effector reside within one intra membranous molecular species, perhaps an evolved nonconducting or poorly conducting voltage-dependent ion channel.
外毛细胞（OHC）具有非线性电荷移动，其特征表明它代表负责OHC机械活动的电压传感器。已知OHC的机械活动沿细胞长度的有限范围存在。我们使用了同时分区微室和全细胞电压钳技术，对OHC膜的各个部分进行电隔离，发现非线性电荷移动也沿细胞长度受到限制。OHC的顶端和基部没有电压传感器，这与细胞中不存在表面下池和/或机械反应的区域相对应。我们得出结论，运动电压传感器的物理域与机械效应器的物理域相对应，并推测传感器和效应器存在于一种膜内分子种类中，可能是一种进化而来的非导电或低导电电压依赖性离子通道。
