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[Isolation of cochlear inner hair cells from guinea pigs by trypsin]
Yuedi Tang1, Shulan Yuan, Shixi Liu
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
Objective:
To obtain isolated inner hair cells from guinea pigs by trypsin digestion and mechanical trituration.
Methods:
The guinea pig was decapitated and the temporal bone was quickly removed. Then the lateral wall of the cochlea was removed. The organ of Corti was dissected out under a dissection microscope. Single hair cells were obtained by digestion with trypsin and gentle mechanical trituration.
Results:
The isolated inner hair cells were observed under inverse microscope. Five to twenty single outer hair cells were obtained from each ear and most of them could survive for about 5 hours.
Conclusion:
This technique can provide sufficient numbers of solitary inner hair cells for studies on the electrophysiological properties of the cells.
