Supporting cells remove and replace sensory receptor hair cells in a balance organ of adult mice.

ABSTRACT: Vestibular hair cells in the inner ear encode head movements and mediate the sense of balance. These cells undergo cell death and replacement (turnover) throughout life in non-mammalian vertebrates. However, there is no definitive evidence that this process occurs in mammals. We used fate-mapping and other methods to demonstrate that utricular type II vestibular hair cells undergo turnover in adult mice under normal conditions. We found that supporting cells phagocytose both type I and II hair cells. Plp1-CreER^T2-expressing supporting cells replace type II hair cells. Type I hair cells are not restored by Plp1-CreER^T2-expressing supporting cells or by Atoh1-CreER^TM-expressing type II hair cells. Destruction of hair cells causes supporti

SUBMITTER: Bucks SA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5338920 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature