Ruth Anne Eatock (Head)
Eduardo Perozo
Marcos Sotomayor
Kazuaki Homma (Northwestern University)
Satoe Takahashi (Northwestern University)
Sensory Mechanotransduction
Electrical Signaling
Dedicated to the study of hair cell development and electrical signaling in auditory and vestibular physiology in normal and pathophysiological states. The goal is to target the two fundamental mechanisms associated with hearing: The nature and mechanism of the mechanotransduction complex (MTC) in hair cells of the cochlea and vestibular system, and the molecular basis of electromotility in the cochlear amplifier (Prestin-mediated).
Ion Channels
At the core of hair cell mechanosensitivity is a collection of 50–100 mechanically gated ion channel complexes that allow for detection of rapid hair bundle movements as small as few angstroms and remains one of the last true frontiers in molecular physiology.
Mechanosensory marvels:
How hair cells power hearing and balance
Hair cells are sensory receptors found in the inner ear of vertebrates. They are fundamental for human hearing and balance as animals sense mechanical forces like touch, vibration, and pressure.
Central to the function of hair cells are ion channels called TMCs, which have similar counterparts in stinging cells of jellyfish and other cnidarians.
By studying those animals, we aim to uncover how mechanosensation has evolved and how they are used across animal life to translate mechanical forces into cellular responses.
Prestin in hearing and sensory mechanotransduction
Prestin is a unique voltage-driven motor protein expressed in cochlear outer hair cells, located in the inner ear. It drives electromotility, a process that refers to voltage-dependent changes in cell length and serves to mechanically amplify auditory signals.
Even though this protein plays a key role in hearing, its molecular function and structure are still to be explored. Recently, we have been looking into the role of anions in prestin’s functional cycle, how the protein responds to mechanical cues, and how its structure and function differs among species.
(Video from Jonathan Ashmore – UCL, London)
We not only aim to further our understanding of the cochlear amplifier at a molecular level but to also introduce possible avenues for therapeutic intervention in the future.
MET Complex
In the field of study of vertebrate hair cells, the molecular mechanisms that connect the mechanoelectrical transduction complex (MET) to diverse mechanical stimuli remain a mystery.
Despite the significant societal and economic impacts of hearing impairments, the detailed composition, structure, and function of the MET complex have remained unclear. The transmembrane channel-like (TMC) group of proteins, particularly, form the core of the mechanosensitive ion channel complex and are thought to underlie the pore-forming subunits of the mechanosensitive machinery in the sensory hair cells of the inner ear, playing a central role in mechanosensory transduction.
We use cnidarian nematocytes as a mechanistic model to explore the MET complex, focusing on TMCs.
