image: Top left: Cochlea from a human temporal bone preparation stained with osmium tetroxide. Image shows the osseous lamina with its nerve fibers in a specimen oriented in nearly horizontal plane. Top right: A pair of tectorial membranes obtained from the cochleae of an OtoaEGFP/EGFP mouse (~3 weeks of age) stained with Alcian Blue. Bottom left: An inner hair cell in a mouse cochlear culture (prepared from a mouse at postnatal day 2) that was biolistically transfected with DNA encoding an EGFP γ-actin construct (green, GFP anti-GFP staining; red, F-actin staining with Texas Red phalloidin). Bottom right: Scanning electron micrograph of outer hair cells in the low-frequency encoding apical region of a rat cochlea (postnatal day 15). view more
Credit: Figures were kindly provided by Charles G. Wright, UT Southwestern Medical Center (top left), Richard J. Goodyear, University of Sussex (top right and bottom left), and Vincent Michel, Institut Pasteur (bottom right).
Cold Spring Harbor, NY -- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press (CSHLP) today announced the release of Function and Dysfunction of the Cochlea, available on its website in hardcover and eBook formats.
The cochlea, the mammalian auditory organ, is a spiral-shaped structure in the inner ear that is responsible for hearing. It converts sound vibrations into electrical signals and sends them to the brain with a remarkable temporal precision. Defects in the cellular or molecular components of the cochlea can lead to deafness and other hearing impairments.
Written and edited by experts in the field, this collection from Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine provides a comprehensive review of the complex molecular mechanisms that are responsible for cochlear function and were, for the most part, revealed by the discovery of genes responsible for hearing impairment. It describes major advances in our understanding of the pathogenic processes underlying various forms of hearing loss and the emergence of treatments for deafness. The contributors focus on the highly specialized cells which mediate auditory transduction--the hair cells--and their unique architectural, mechanical, and molecular characteristics. They also consider the properties of other cochlear components, including the tectorial membrane, the synaptic connections with auditory neurons, and the resident macrophages, as well as the development and evolution of the cochlea as a whole. Topics such as hair cell regeneration, otoacoustic emissions, and ototoxicity are also discussed.
In addition, the authors examine the epidemiology of hearing loss and emerging, innovative, therapeutic strategies (e.g., gene therapy, optical cochlear implants). This volume is therefore a valuable reference for cell biologists and neuroscientists interested in the biology of hearing, as well as physician-scientists seeking new approaches to alleviate hearing impairments.
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Please visit our website at http://www.cshlpress.org to access free sample material and for further information on this title.