Abstract
Tight control over cochlear blood flow (CoBF) and the blood-labyrinth barrier (BLB) in the striavascularis is critical for maintaining the ionic, fluid and energy balance necessary for hearing function. Inefficient CoBF and disruption of BLB integrity have long been considered major etiologic factors in a variety of hearing disorders. In this study, we investigate structural changes in the BLB of the striavascularis in age-graded C57BL/6 mice (1 to 21 months) with a focus on changes in two blood barrier accessory cells, namely pericytes (PCs) and perivascular-resident macrophage-like melanocytes (PVM/Ms). Decreased capillary density was detectable at 6 months, with significant capillary degeneration seen in 9- to 21-month-old mice. Reduced capillary density was highly correlated with lower numbers of PCs and PVM/Ms. “Drop-out” of PCs and “activation” of PVM/Ms were seen at 6 months, with drastic changes being observed by 21 months. With newly established in vitro three-dimensional cell-based co-culture models, we demonstrate that PCs and PVM/Ms are essential for maintaining cochlear vascular architecture and stability.
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Acknowledgments
This project was conducted at the Oregon Hearing Research Center, Department of Otolaryngology and the Head and Neck Surgery, Oregon Health and Science University. We thank Dr. Rachel Dumont at the Oregon Hearing Research Center for her comments on the manuscript and valuable assistance with TEM imaging.
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This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (grants NIH NIDCD R01-DC010844 to X.S., DC R21DC1239801 to X.S. and NIHP30-DC005983), the National Key Basic Research Program of China (no. 2014CB943001) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (no. 81120108009).
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Neng, L., Zhang, J., Yang, J. et al. Structural changes in thestrial blood–labyrinth barrier of aged C57BL/6 mice. Cell Tissue Res 361, 685–696 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00441-015-2147-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00441-015-2147-2