Finally, Scientists Have Figured Out A Key Molecular Mechanism Behind Human Hearing
Posted: Thu Oct 20, 2022 1:43 am
Finally, Scientists Have Figured Out A Key Molecular Mechanism Behind Human Hearing
https://www.sciencealert.com/finally-sc ... an-hearing
Scientists have finally unraveled the structure of a mysterious protein complex inside the inner ear that enables hearing in humans.
To solve this decades-old puzzle, researchers needed to grow 60 million roundworms (Caenorhabditis elegans), which use a very similar protein complex as humans do to sense touch.
As humans only have a tiny amount of this protein inside their inner ears, turning to another source was the only way the team could accumulate enough of the protein to study.
"We spent several years optimizing worm-growth and protein-isolation methods, and had many 'rock-bottom' moments when we considered giving up," says co-first author Sarah Clark, a biochemist from Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) in Portland.
Researchers have known for some time that the transmembrane channel-like protein 1 (TMC1) complex performs an important role in hearing, but the exact makeup has remained elusive.
"This is the last sensory system in which that fundamental molecular machinery has remained unknown," says senior author Eric Gouaux, a senior biochemist at OHSU.
Thanks to this new research, published in Nature, we now know that this protein complex operates as a tension-sensitive ion channel that opens and closes depending upon the movement of hairs inside the inner ear.
https://www.sciencealert.com/finally-sc ... an-hearing
Scientists have finally unraveled the structure of a mysterious protein complex inside the inner ear that enables hearing in humans.
To solve this decades-old puzzle, researchers needed to grow 60 million roundworms (Caenorhabditis elegans), which use a very similar protein complex as humans do to sense touch.
As humans only have a tiny amount of this protein inside their inner ears, turning to another source was the only way the team could accumulate enough of the protein to study.
"We spent several years optimizing worm-growth and protein-isolation methods, and had many 'rock-bottom' moments when we considered giving up," says co-first author Sarah Clark, a biochemist from Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) in Portland.
Researchers have known for some time that the transmembrane channel-like protein 1 (TMC1) complex performs an important role in hearing, but the exact makeup has remained elusive.
"This is the last sensory system in which that fundamental molecular machinery has remained unknown," says senior author Eric Gouaux, a senior biochemist at OHSU.
Thanks to this new research, published in Nature, we now know that this protein complex operates as a tension-sensitive ion channel that opens and closes depending upon the movement of hairs inside the inner ear.