HCN Channels Are Not Required for Mechanotransduction in Sensory Hair Cells of the Mouse Inner Ear

The molecular composition of the hair cell transduction channel has not been identified. Here we explore the novel hypothesis that hair cell transduction channels include HCN subunits. The HCN family of ion channels includes four members, HCN1-4. They were orginally identified as the molecular correlates of the hyperpolarization-activated, cyclic nucleotide gated ion channels that carry currents known as If, IQ or Ih. However, based on recent evidence it has been suggested that HCN subunits may also be components of the elusive hair cell transduction channel. To investigate this hypothesis we examined expression of mRNA that encodes HCN1-4 in sensory epithelia of the mouse inner ear, immunolocalization of HCN subunits 1, 2 and 4, uptake of the transduction channel permeable dye, FM1-43 and electrophysiological measurement of mechanotransduction current. Dye uptake and transduction current were assayed in cochlear and vestibular hair cells of wildtype mice exposed to HCN channel blockers or a dominant-negative form of HCN2 that contained a pore mutation and in mutant mice that lacked HCN1, HCN2 or both. We found robust expression of HCNs 1, 2 and 4 but little evidence that localized HCN subunits in hair bundles, the site of mechanotransduction. Although high concentrations of the HCN antagonist, ZD7288, blocked 50–70% of the transduction current, we found no reduction of transduction current in either cochlear or vestibular hair cells of HCN1- or HCN2- deficient mice relative to wild-type mice. Furthermore, mice that lacked both HCN1 and HCN2 also had normal transduction currents. Lastly, we found that mice exposed to the dominant-negative mutant form of HCN2 had normal transduction currents as well. Taken together, the evidence suggests that HCN subunits are not required for mechanotransduction in hair cells of the mouse inner ear

Gene Therapy Restores Auditory and Vestibular Function in a Mouse Model of Usher Syndrome Type 1c

Because there are currently no biological treatments for deafness, we sought to advance gene therapy approaches to treat genetic deafness. We reasoned that gene delivery systems that target auditory and vestibular sensory cells with high efficiency would be required to restore complex auditory and balance function. We focused on Usher Syndrome, a devastating genetic disorder that causes blindness, balance disorders and profound deafness, and used a knock-in mouse model, Ush1c c.216G>A, which carries a cryptic splice site mutation found in French-Acadian patients with Usher Syndrome type IC (USH1C). Following delivery of wild-type Ush1c into the inner ears of neonatal Ush1c c.216G>A mice, we find recovery of gene and protein expression, restoration of sensory cell function, rescue of complex auditory function and recovery of hearing and balance behavior to near wild-type levels. The data represent unprecedented recovery of inner ear function and suggest that biological therapies to treat deafness may be suitable for translation to humans with genetic inner ear disorders

Tonotopic Gradient in the Developmental Acquisition of Sensory Transduction in Outer Hair Cells of the Mouse Cochlea

Inner ear hair cells are exquisite mechanosensors that transduce nanometer scale deflections of their sensory hair bundles into electrical signals. Several essential elements must be precisely assembled during development to confer the unique structure and function of the mechanotransduction apparatus. Here we investigated the functional development of the transduction complex in outer hair cells along the length of mouse cochlea acutely excised between embryonic day 17 (E17) and postnatal day 8 (P8). We charted development of the stereociliary bundle using scanning electron microscopy; FM1-43 uptake, which permeates hair cell transduction channels, mechanotransduction currents evoked by rapid hair bundle deflections, and mRNA expression of possible components of the transduction complex. We demonstrated that uptake of FM1-43 first occurred in the basal portion of the cochlea at P0 and progressed toward the apex over the subsequent week. Electrophysiological recordings obtained from 234 outer hair cells between E17 and P8 from four cochlear regions revealed a correlation between the pattern of FM1-43 uptake and the acquisition of mechanotransduction. We found a spatiotemporal gradient in the properties of transduction including onset, amplitude, operating range, time course, and extent of adaptation. We used quantitative RT–PCR to examine relative mRNA expression of several hair cell myosins and candidate tip-link molecules. We found spatiotemporal expression patterns for mRNA that encodes cadherin 23, protocadherin 15, myosins 3a, 7a, 15a, and PMCA2 that preceded the acquisition of transduction. The spatiotemporal expression patterns of myosin 1c and PMCA2 mRNA were correlated with developmental changes in several properties of mechanotransduction

Whole-cell currents recorded from control and transfected cells.

<p>(A & B) Representative mechanotransduction currents recorded from mouse utricle type II hair cells at P3 - P6. Bundle deflections were evoked using the protocol shown at the bottom of <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0008627#pone-0008627-g003" target="_blank">figure 3I</a>. Panel A shows data from a non-transfected control cell and panel B shows data from a GFP+ cell transfected with the HCN2-AYA construct. The scale bars in B apply to panels A and B. (C & D) Representative currents recorded in response to families of voltage steps that ranged between −124 mV and −64 mV in 10 mV increments. Capacitive transients and leak currents were subtracted for clarity. The scale bars in panel D apply to both panels C and D. Panel C shows I_h recorded from a non-transfected utricle type II hair cell from the same epithelium as that shown in panel A. Panel D shows a family of currents recorded from the same GFP+ shown in panel B. A family of voltage steps was used that was identical to those used to evoke the data shown in panel C. In this case, expression of the HCN2-AYA construct inhibited I_h. (E) A fluorescence image that revealed GFP expression was superimposed on a DIC image of the same field of cells. The recording pipette is visible to the right of the cell. Scale bar equals 5 µm.</p

Mechanotransduction in wild-type and HCN-deficient hair cells.

<p>Representative mechanotransduction currents evoked by hair bundle deflections. The left column of data were recorded from mouse utricle type II hair cells at P3 - P6. The data in the right column were recorded from mouse cochlear outer hair cells at P6 - P7. The scale bars at the top apply to all data in the column. The deflection protocol is shown at the bottom of trace panels I and J. Data were recorded under the following conditions: (A & B) wild-type control; (C & D) in the presence of 500 µM ZD7288; (E & F) HCN1^−/−; (G & H) HCN2^−/−; (I& J) HCN1^−/− and HCN2^−/−. Panels K-P show fluorescent images of hair cells following application of the transduction channel permeable dye, FM1-43, in utricle (P5 –P7) and organ of Corti (P6 – P9) sensory epithelia under the following conditions: (K & L) HCN1^−/−; (M & N) HCN2^−/−; (O& P) HCN1^−/− and HCN2^−/−. Uptake of FM1-43 appeared normal in all tissues examined. The scale bar in panel (O) equals 10 µm and also applies to panels K and M. The scale bar in panel (P) equals 5 µm and also applies to panels L and N. (Q) Summary of transduction currents recorded from vestibular and auditory hair cells. Maximum current amplitudes under each condition were averaged and were normalized relative to wild-type controls. Error bars show standard deviation; the number of samples is indicated above each bar.</p

Immunolocalization of HCN subunits in the inner ear.

<p>All panels show confocal images of mouse inner ear epithelia with phalloidin staining shown on the left, HCN1 in the center and the merged image on the right. Phalloidin is shown in red and HCN1 in green. All scale bars indicate 5 µm. (A) Stereociliary bundles of wild-type mouse utricle at P8 stained with an antibody directed against the N-terminus of HCN1. (B) Basolateral hair cell membranes of wild-type mouse utricle stained with the N-terminal HCN1 antibody. (C) Stereociliary bundles of wild-type mouse cochlea harvested from the apex at P8 stained with same N-terminal HCN1 antibody. (D) Confocal image of the stereociliary bundles from a P8 utricle of a HCN1^−/− mouse stained the same HCN1 antibody shown in panels A–C. (E) Wild-type utricle focused at the hair bundle level stained with a different antibody that recognizes an epitope in the C-terminus. (F) Wild-type cochlear hair bundles stained with the antibody that recognizes the epitope in the C-terminus.</p

Differential Distribution of Stem Cells in the Auditory and Vestibular Organs of the Inner Ear

The adult mammalian cochlea lacks regenerative capacity, which is the main reason for the permanence of hearing loss. Vestibular organs, in contrast, replace a small number of lost hair cells. The reason for this difference is unknown. In this work we show isolation of sphere-forming stem cells from the early postnatal organ of Corti, vestibular sensory epithelia, the spiral ganglion, and the stria vascularis. Organ of Corti and vestibular sensory epithelial stem cells give rise to cells that express multiple hair cell markers and express functional ion channels reminiscent of nascent hair cells. Spiral ganglion stem cells display features of neural stem cells and can give rise to neurons and glial cell types. We found that the ability for sphere formation in the mouse cochlea decreases about 100-fold during the second and third postnatal weeks; this decrease is substantially faster than the reduction of stem cells in vestibular organs, which maintain their stem cell population also at older ages. Coincidentally, the relative expression of developmental and progenitor cell markers in the cochlea decreases during the first 3 postnatal weeks, which is in sharp contrast to the vestibular system, where expression of progenitor cell markers remains constant or even increases during this period. Our findings indicate that the lack of regenerative capacity in the adult mammalian cochlea is either a result of an early postnatal loss of stem cells or diminishment of stem cell features of maturing cochlear cells

A Quantitative Analysis of the Spatiotemporal Pattern of Transient Receptor Potential Gene Expression in the Developing Mouse Cochlea

TRP genes encode a diverse family of ion channels which have been implicated in many sensory functions. Because several TRP channels have similar properties to the elusive hair cell transduction channel, recent attention has focused on TRP gene expression in the inner ear. At least four TRP genes are known to be expressed in hair cells: TRPC3, TRPV4, TRPA1, and TRPML3. However, there is little evidence supporting any of these as a component of the transduction complex. Other less well-characterized TRP channels are expressed in the inner ear, in particular, within the organ of Corti. Because of their potential role in sensory function, we investigated the developmental expression of RNA that encodes all 33 TRP subunits as well as several splice variants. We designed a quantitative PCR screen using cochlear samples acquired before, during, and after the time when mechanotransduction is acquired in sensory hair cells (embryonic day 17 to postnatal day 8). Cochleas, which included the organ of Corti, stria vascularis, and Reissner’s membrane, were subdivided into four equal quadrants which allowed for regional comparison during development. Expression of RNA transcripts that encoded 33 TRP subunits plus several splice forms and beta-actin were quantified in 28 samples for a total of 1,092 individual measurements, each done in triplicate. We detected RNA that encoded all TRP channels except two: TRPC7 and TRPM8. The largest changes in RNA expression were for TRPA1 (>100-fold), TRPP3 (>50-fold), and TRPC5.2 (>20-fold) which suggested that these subunits may contribute to normal cochlear function. Furthermore, the screen revealed TRPP3 and PKD1L3 RNA expression patterns that were correlated with the acquisition of sensory transduction in outer hair cells (Lelli et al., J Neurophysiol. 101:2961–2973, 2009). Numerous spatiotemporal expression gradients were identified many of which may contribute to the normal functional development of the mouse cochlea