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Cochlear adaptation: A theoretical description

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Abstract

Cochlear adaptation is postulated to arise in the haircell-first auditory neuron junction due to steady-state reactions between transmitter quanta and receptor sites, thus forming transmitter-receptor complexes which are destroyed enzymatically. The striking resemblance between this mechanism and the occupation and liberation of lines in telephone exchanges led us to apply a well-established stochastic theory for the latter to the adaptation phenomena in the peripheral hearing organ. The theory is evaluated by comparison with experimental data from forward-masking experiments using the compound action potential as a sensor and also with single-nerve fibre data from the literature.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Academisch Ziekenhuis, Leiden, The Netherlands

    J. J. Eggermont

  2. ENT-Department, University Hospital, Leiden, The Netherlands

    J. J. Eggermont

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  1. J. J. Eggermont
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Eggermont, J.J. Cochlear adaptation: A theoretical description. Biol. Cybernetics 19, 181–189 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02281967

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02281967

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