Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Kitajiri S
PROVIDER: S-EPMC4133728 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jul
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Kitajiri Shin-Ichiro S Katsuno Tatsuya T Sasaki Hiroyuki H Ito Juichi J Furuse Mikio M Tsukita Shoichiro S
Biology open 20140725 8
Occludin is the first identified protein in the tight junction (TJ), but its function has remained for the most part obscure. TJs have been demonstrated to play important roles in the inner ear function, and occludin is expressed in all the epithelial TJs in the inner ear. Thus, we examined the inner ears of occludin-deficient (Occ(-/-)) mice. Although inner ears initially developed normally in Occ(-/-) mice, apoptosis occurs in hair cells in the organ of Corti around day 12 after birth, and dea ...[more]