Premium
Cellular junction remodeling underlies the role for the planar cell polarity pathway in directional cochlear extension
Author(s) -
Chen Ping,
Ren Dongdong,
ChaconHeszele Maria,
Kelly Micahel C,
Qian Dong
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.24.1_supplement.59.3
Subject(s) - organ of corti , microbiology and biotechnology , hair cell , biology , inner ear , organ culture , cochlear duct , cochlea , sensory system , convergent extension , anatomy , neuroscience , genetics , embryogenesis , in vitro , embryo , gastrulation
The mammalian hearing organ, the organ of Corti, is suspended along the spiraled cochlear duct and consists of stereotypical arrays of uniformly oriented sensory hair cells interdigitated with supporting cells. During development, postmitotic precursor cells of the organ of Corti undergo cellular rearrangement, resulting in its extension as well as precise patterning of sensory and non‐sensory cells and uniform orientation of hair cells. It is thought that the vertebrate planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway regulates both the cellular rearrangement for the extension of the organ of Corti and the uniform orientation of sensory hair cells. The objectives of this study are to characterize cellular behavior and morphology during terminal differentiation of the organ of Corti, and to investigate the mechanism underlying cellular rearrangements for the extension of the organ of Corti. We examined cellular geometry, cellular contacts and junctions in the wild‐type developing organ of Corti. We also examined the development of the organ of Corti in mouse mutants defective in an adheren junction component, p120, or in an essential PCP component, Vangl2. We are carrying out live imaging to record cellular behavior and geometric change during terminal differentiation of the organ of Corti in culture. Our results show that the developing organ of Corti undergoes unique cellular intercalation for its directional extension. Proper remodeling of cell‐cell junctions is required for cochlear extension, and the role for the PCP pathway in cochlear extension is likely mediated by cell adhesion molecules and independent of the role for PCP pathway in hair cell orientation.