Immunohistochemical localization of vimentin in the gerbil inner ear

Cells containing immunoreactive vimentin-type intermediate filaments (IF) were identified in paraffin sections and whole-mount preparations of the gerbil inner ear. Most connective tissue cells showed positive immunostaining, although one unusual class of stromal cell lacked vimentin. Several different types of epithelial cells contained high levels of vimentin. In the cochlea, Deiters' cells, inner phalangeal cells, Boettcher's cells, some outer sulcus cells, and the intermediate cells of the stria vascularis showed strong immunoreactivity. Strial basal cells exhibited weaker and less consistent staining. Neither inner nor outer hair cells were stained. In the vestibular system, hair cells with a morphology and location more characteristic of type I than of type II cells showed strong immunostaining for vimentin. Supporting cells in vestibular neurosensory epithelium stained with less intensity. These results were surprising because epithelial cells in vivo only rarely express vimentin-type IF. Although the functional significance of vimentin remains to be established, its presence in some but not other highly specialized cell types provides an excellent marker for investigating the lineage and morphogenesis of the complex inner ear tissues.