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Ca2+ currents and voltage responses in Type I and Type II hair cells of the chick embryo semicircular canal

  • Sensory Systems
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Abstract

Type I and Type II hair cells, and Type II hair cells located in different zones of the semicircular canal crista, express different patterns of voltage-dependent K channels, each one specifically shaping the hair cell receptor potential. We report here that, close to hatching, chicken embryo semicircular canal Type I and Type II hair cells express a similar voltage-dependent L-type calcium current (ICa), whose main features are: activation above −60 mV, fast activation kinetics, and scarce inactivation. ICa should be already active at rest in Zone 1 Type II hair cells, whose resting membrane potential was on average slightly less negative than −60 mV. Conversely, ICa would not be active at rest in Type II hair cells from Zone 2 and 3, nor in Type I hair cells, since their resting membrane potential was significantly more negative than −60 mV. However, even small depolarising currents would activate ICa steadily in Zone 2 and 3 Type II hair cells, but not in Type I hair cells because of the robust repolarising action of their specific array of K+ currents. The implications of the present findings in the afferent discharge are discussed.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. M. J. Correia and Dr. P. S. Guth, for valuable comments on the manuscript. This work was supported by the Ministero della Ricerca Scientifica e Tecnologica (MURST), Rome, Italy.

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  1. Dipartimento di Scienze Fisiologiche-Farmacologiche Cellulari-Molecolari, Sez. di Fisiologia Generale e Biofisica Cellulare, Università di Pavia, Via Forlanini 6, 27100, Pavia, Italy

    Sergio Masetto, Valeria Zampini, Giampiero Zucca & Paolo Valli

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  1. Sergio Masetto
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  2. Valeria Zampini
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Correspondence to Sergio Masetto.

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Masetto, S., Zampini, V., Zucca, G. et al. Ca2+ currents and voltage responses in Type I and Type II hair cells of the chick embryo semicircular canal. Pflugers Arch - Eur J Physiol 451, 395–408 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00424-005-1466-7

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