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Published on: October 11, 2024
Voltage Does Not Drive Prestin (SLC26a5) Electro-Mechanical Activity at High Frequencies Where Cochlear Amplification
Joseph Santos-Sacchi1, Winston Tan2
1Surgery (Otolaryngology), Yale University School of Medicine, BML 224, 333 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Neuroscience, Yale University School of Medicine, 333 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Yale University School of Medicine, 333 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT 06510, USA.
Abstract:
Cochlear amplification denotes a boost to auditory sensitivity and selectivity that is dependent on outer hair cells from Corti's organ. Voltage-driven electromotility of the cell is believed to feed energy back into the cochlear partition via a cycle-by-cycle mechanism at very high acoustic frequencies. Here we show using wide-band macro-patch voltage-clamp to drive prestin, the molecular motor underlying electromotility, that its voltage-sensor charge movement is unusually low pass in nature, being incapable of following high-frequency voltage changes. Our data are incompatible with a cycle-by-cycle mechanism responsible for high-frequency tuning in mammals.
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