Microanatomy of the human tunnel of Corti structures and cochlear partition‐tonotopic variations and transcellular signaling

作者：Dina Giese, Hao Li, Wei Liu, Karin Staxäng, Monika Hodik, Hanif M. Ladak, Sumit Agrawal, Anneliese Schrott‐Fischer, Rudolf Glueckert, Helge Rask‐Andersen · 发表于：Journal of Anatomy · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1111/joa.14045 · 被引用次数：8 · 研究领域：Hearing Loss and Rehabilitation、Hearing, Cochlea, Tinnitus, Genetics、Acoustic Wave Phenomena Research

Auditory sensitivity and frequency resolution depend on the optimal transfer of sound-induced vibrations from the basilar membrane (BM) to the inner hair cells (IHCs), the principal auditory receptors. There remains a paucity of information on how this is accomplished along the frequency range in the human cochlea. Most of the current knowledge is derived either from animal experiments or human tissue processed after death, offering limited structural preservation and optical resolution. In our study, we analyzed the cytoarchitecture of the human cochlear partition at different frequency locations using high-resolution microscopy of uniquely preserved normal human tissue. The results may have clinical implications and increase our understanding of how frequency-dependent acoustic vibrations are carried to human IHCs. A 1-micron-thick plastic-embedded section (mid-modiolar) from a normal human cochlea uniquely preserved at lateral skull base surgery was analyzed using light and transmission electron microscopy (LM, TEM). Frequency locations were estimated using synchrotron radiation phase-contrast imaging (SR-PCI). Archival human tissue prepared for scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and super-resolution structured illumination microscopy (SR-SIM) were also used and compared in this study. Microscopy demonstrated great variations in the dimension and architecture of the human cochlear partition along the frequency range. Pillar cell geometry was closely regulated and depended ...