De Faveri, F. orcid.org/0000-0001-7691-5635, Ceriani, F. orcid.org/0000-0002-5366-341X and Marcotti, W. orcid.org/0000-0002-8770-7628 (2025) In vivo spontaneous Ca2+ activity in the pre-hearing mammalian cochlea. Nature Communications, 16. 29.
Abstract
The refinement of neural circuits towards mature function is driven during development by patterned spontaneous calcium-dependent electrical activity. In the auditory system, this sensory-independent activity arises in the pre-hearing cochlea and regulates the survival and refinement of the auditory pathway. However, the origin and interplay of calcium signals during cochlear development is unknown in vivo. Here we show how calcium dynamics in the cochlear neuroepithelium of live pre-hearing mice shape the activity of the inner hair cells (IHCs) and their afferent synapses. Both IHCs and supporting cells (SCs) generate spontaneous calcium-dependent activity. Calcium waves from SCs synchronise the activity of nearby IHCs, which then spreads longitudinally recruiting several additional IHCs via a calcium wave-independent mechanism. This synchronised IHC activity in vivo increases the probability of afferent terminal recruitment. Moreover, the modiolar-to-pillar segregation in sound sensitivity of mature auditory nerve fibres appears to be primed at pre-hearing ages.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2025 The Authors. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | Cochlea; Sensory processing |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > School of Biosciences (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 16 Jan 2025 15:45 |
Last Modified: | 16 Jan 2025 15:45 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-55519-w |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Springer Science and Business Media LLC |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1038/s41467-024-55519-w |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:221390 |