Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 8, 2026

An Isolated Semi-intact Preparation of the Mouse Vestibular Sensory Epithelium for Electrophysiology and High-resolution Two-photon Microscopy
Published on: June 13, 2013
Hydrogen protects vestibular hair cells from free radicals
Akiko Taura1, Yayoi S Kikkawa, Takayuki Nakagawa
1Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
Conclusion:
Hydrogen gas effectively protected against the morphological and functional vestibular hair cell damage by reactive oxygen species (ROS).
Objective:
ROS are generally produced by oxidative stress. In the inner ear, ROS levels increase as a result of noise trauma and ototoxic drugs and induce damage. It is thus important to control ROS levels in the inner ear. The protective effects of hydrogen gas in cochlear hair cells have been reported previously.
Methods:
This study examined the effects of hydrogen gas on mouse vestibular hair cell damage by ROS using antimycin A.
Results:
In the group *exposed to hydrogen gas, vestibular hair cells were morphologically well preserved and their mechano-electrical transduction activities were relatively well maintained when compared with controls. Hydroxyphenyl fluorescein (HPF) fluorescence in vestibular tissue was also reduced by hydrogen gas.
Related Concept Videos
The Vestibular System
Equilibrium and Balance
Hair Cells
Unrenewable Cells
Photoreceptors
The retina is composed of several layers and contains specialized cells called photoreceptors. The photoreceptors (rods and cones) change their membrane potential when stimulated by light energy. There are two types of photoreceptors—rods and cones—which differ in the shape of their outer...
Accessory Structures of the Skin: Hair and Hair Follicles
Hair is a keratinous filament growing out of the epidermis. It is primarily made of dead, keratinized cells. Hair strands originate at the epidermal penetration called the hair follicle. The hair shaft is the part...
The Cochlea

