Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 26, 2026
10:25
Real-time Bioluminescence Imaging of Notch Signaling Dynamics during Murine Neurogenesis
Published on: December 12, 2019
8.3K
Canonical Notch signaling plays an instructive role in auditory supporting cell development
Dean P Campbell1,2, Elena Chrysostomou1,2, Angelika Doetzlhofer1,2
1Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
Scientific Reports
|January 21, 2016
Summary
Canonical Notch signaling is crucial for auditory supporting cell (SC) differentiation and the development of Deiters
Area of Science:
- Otolaryngology
- Developmental Biology
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Auditory sensory epithelium relies on hair cells (HCs) and supporting cells (SCs) for sound detection.
- SCs are vital for HC support, cochlear development, homeostasis, and repair.
- Molecular mechanisms governing SC differentiation remain largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of canonical Notch signaling in auditory supporting cell differentiation.
- To identify novel Notch-regulated genes involved in SC function and development.
Main Methods:
- Utilized γ-secretase inhibitor DAPT to block Notch signaling acutely.
- Employed genetic gain-of-function (Emx2(Cre/+); Rosa26(N1ICD/+)) and loss-of-function (Emx2(Cre/+); Rosa26(DnMAML1/+)) models in mice.
- Analyzed SC-specific gene expression in differentiating murine cochlea.
Main Results:
- Identified a cohort of Notch-regulated SC-specific genes with roles in cell signaling, differentiation, and innervation.
- Demonstrated that Notch over-activation promotes SC-specific gene expression.
- Showed that reduced or abolished Notch signaling leads to selective loss of outer SCs (Deiters' cells).
Conclusions:
- Canonical Notch signaling plays a positive, instructive role in auditory supporting cell differentiation.
- Notch signaling is essential for the development and survival of Deiters' cells.
- This study elucidates key molecular mechanisms in cochlear development and SC biology.
Related Concept Videos
03:14Notch Signaling Pathway
6.9K
The Notch signaling pathway is a major intracellular signaling pathway that is highly conserved over a broad spectrum of metazoan species. It stands unique from other intracellular signaling mechanisms in animals because notch protein itself acts as the receptor as well as the primary signaling molecule.
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not...
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not...
6.9K
03:14Notch Signaling Pathway
6.5K
6.5K
01:12Role Of Notch Signalling In Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal
2.6K
Notch signaling was first discovered in Drosophila melanogaster, where it is involved in cell lineage differentiation. Notch signaling regulates the maintenance and differentiation of intestinal stem cells or ISCs by controlling the expression of atonal homolog 1 or Atoh1. Atoh1 directs cells to differentiate into secretory cells.
Direct cell-to-cell contact is needed for the activation of Notch signaling. The signal is initiated when a notch ligand binds to a receptor on an adjacent cell, also...
Direct cell-to-cell contact is needed for the activation of Notch signaling. The signal is initiated when a notch ligand binds to a receptor on an adjacent cell, also...
2.6K
01:13The Cochlea
52.4K
The cochlea is a coiled structure in the inner ear that contains hair cells—the sensory receptors of the auditory system. Sound waves are transmitted to the cochlea by small bones attached to the eardrum called the ossicles, which vibrate the oval window that leads to the inner ear. This causes fluid in the chambers of the cochlea to move, vibrating the basilar membrane.
52.4K
01:15Auditory Pathway
8.8K
Auditory pathways constitute the complex neural circuits responsible for transmitting and interpreting auditory information from the peripheral auditory system to the brain. Sound waves are initially captured by the outer ear, funneled through the ear canal, and reach the tympanic membrane (eardrum). These vibrations are transmitted via the middle ear's ossicles to the inner ear's cochlea.
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking...
When viewed cross-sectionally, the cochlea reveals the scala vestibuli and scala tympani flanking...
8.8K
01:22Hair Cells
46.5K
Hair cells are the sensory receptors of the auditory system—they transduce mechanical sound waves into electrical energy that the nervous system can understand. Hair cells are located in the organ of Corti within the cochlea of the inner ear, between the basilar and tectorial membranes. The actual sensory receptors are called inner hair cells. The outer hair cells serve other functions, such as sound amplification in the cochlea, and are not discussed in detail here.
46.5K