Uniquely among human senses, hearing is not simply a passive response to stimulation.
Our auditory system is instead enhanced by an active process in cochlear hair cells that …

Much is known about the mechanotransducer (MT) channels mediating transduction in hair
cells of the vertrbrate inner ear. With the use of isolated preparations, it is experimentally …

The exquisite sensitivity and frequency discrimination of mammalian hearing underlie the
ability to understand complex speech in noise. This requires force generation by cochlear …

Perception of external objects involves sensory acquisition via the relevant sensory organs.
A widely-accepted assumption is that the sensory organ is the first station in a serial chain of …

To enhance weak sounds while compressing the dynamic intensity range, auditory sensory
cells amplify sound-induced vibrations in a nonlinear, intensity-dependent manner. In the …

The semicircular canals are responsible for sensing angular head motion in three-
dimensional space and for providing neural inputs to the central nervous system (CNS) …

The tonotopic map of the mammalian cochlea is commonly thought to be determined by the
passive mechanical properties of the basilar membrane. The other tissues and cells that …

Background Congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is a leading cause of
sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). The mechanisms of pathogenesis of CMV-related SNHL …

There is indirect evidence that the mammalian cochlea in the low-frequency apical and the
more commonly studied high-frequency basal regions function in fundamentally different …

Insects must wonder why mammals have ears only in their head and why they evolved only
one common principle of ear design—the cochlea. Ears independently evolved at least 19 …