Genetic and pharmacologic alterations of claudin9 levels suffice to induce functional and mature inner hair cells.

Hearing loss is the most common form of sensory deficit. It occurs predominantly due to hair cell (HC) loss. Mammalian HCs are terminally differentiated by birth, making HC loss incurable. Here, we show the pharmacogenetic downregulation of Cldn9, a tight junction protein, generates robust supernumerary inner HCs (IHCs) in mice. The putative ectopic IHCs have functional and synaptic features akin to typical IHCs and were surprisingly and remarkably preserved for at least fifteen months >50% of the mouse's life cycle. In vivo, Cldn9 knockdown using shRNA on postnatal days (P) P1-7 yielded analogous functional putative ectopic IHCs that were equally durably conserved. The findings suggest that Cldn9 levels coordinate embryonic and postnatal HC differentiation, making it a viable target for altering IHC development pre- and post-terminal differentiation.

A Chromosome 17 Locus Engenders Frequency-Specific Non-Progressive Hearing Loss that Contributes to Age-Related Hearing Loss in Mice.

The 129S6/SvEvTac (129S6) inbred mouse is known for its resistance to noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). However, less is understood of its unique age-related hearing loss (AHL) phenotype and its potential relationship with the resistance to NIHL. Here, we studied the physiological characteristics of hearing loss in 129S6 and asked if noise resistance (NR) and AHL are genetically linked to the same chromosomal region. We used auditory brainstem response (ABR) and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAE) to examine hearing sensitivity between 1 and 13 months of age of recombinant-inbred (congenic) mice with an NR phenotype. We identified a region of proximal chromosome (Chr) 17 (D17Mit143-D17Mit100) that contributes to a sensory, non-progressive hearing loss (NPHL) affecting exclusively the high-frequencies (>24 kHz) and maps to the nr1 locus on Chr 17. ABR experiments showed that 129S6 and CBA/CaJ F1 (CBACa) hybrid mice exhibit normal hearing, indicating that the hearing loss in 129S6 mice is inherited recessively. An allelic complementation test between the 129S6 and 101/H (101H) strains did not rescue hearing loss, suggesting genetic allelism between the nphl and phl1 loci of these strains, respectively. The hybrids had a milder hearing loss than either parental strain, which indicate a possible interaction with other genes in the mouse background or a digenic interaction between different genes that reside in the same genomic region. Our study defines a locus for nphl on Chr 17 affecting frequencies greater than 24 kHz.

SIFamide peptides in clawed lobsters and freshwater crayfish (Crustacea, Decapoda, Astacidea): a combined molecular, mass spectrometric and electrophysiological investigation.

Recently, we identified the peptide VYRKPPFNGSIFamide (Val(1)-SIFamide) in the stomatogastric nervous system (STNS) of the American lobster Homarus americanus using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-Fourier transform mass spectrometry (MALDI-FTMS). Given that H. americanus is the only species thus far shown to possess this peptide, and that a second SIFamide isoform, Gly(1)-SIFamide, is broadly conserved in other decapods, including another astacidean, the crayfish Procambarus clarkii, we became interested both in confirming our identification of Val(1)-SIFamide via molecular methods and in determining the extent to which this isoform is conserved within other members of the infraorder Astacidea. Here, we present the identification and characterization of an H. americanus prepro-SIFamide cDNA that encodes the Val(1) isoform. Moreover, we demonstrate via MALDI-FTMS the presence of Val(1)-SIFamide in a second Homarus species, Homarus gammarus. In contrast, only the Gly(1) isoform was detected in the other astacideans investigated, including the lobster Nephrops norvegicus, a member of the same family as Homarus, and the crayfish Cherax quadricarinatus, P. clarkii and Pacifastacus leniusculus, which represent members of each of the extant families of freshwater astacideans. These results suggest that Val(1)-SIFamide may be a genus (Homarus)-specific isoform. Interestingly, both Val(1)- and Gly(1)-SIFamide possess an internal dibasic site, Arg(3)-Lys(4), raising the possibility of the ubiquitously conserved isoform PPFNGSIFamide. However, this octapeptide was not detected via MALDI-FTMS in any of the investigated species, and when applied to the isolated STNS of H. americanus possessed little bioactivity relative to the full-length Val(1) isoform. Thus, it appears that the dodeca-variants Val(1)- and Gly(1)-SIFamide are the sole bioactive isoforms of this peptide family in clawed lobsters and freshwater crayfish.

Identification, physiological actions, and distribution of TPSGFLGMRamide: a novel tachykinin-related peptide from the midgut and stomatogastric nervous system of Cancer crabs.

In most invertebrates, multiple species-specific isoforms of tachykinin-related peptide (TRP) are common. In contrast, only a single conserved TRP isoform, APSGFLGMRamide, has been documented in decapod crustaceans, leading to the hypothesis that it is the sole TRP present in this arthropod order. Previous studies of crustacean TRPs have focused on neuronal tissue, but the recent demonstration of TRPs in midgut epithelial cells in Cancer species led us to question whether other TRPs are present in the gut, as is the case in insects. Using direct tissue matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization Fourier transform mass spectrometry, in combination with sustained off-resonance irradiation collision-induced dissociation, we found that at least one additional TRP is present in Cancer irroratus, Cancer borealis, Cancer magister, and Cancer productus. The novel TRP isoform, TPSGFLGMRamide, was present not only in the midgut, but also in the stomatogastric nervous system (STNS). In addition, we identified an unprocessed TRP precursor APSGFLGMRG, which was detected in midgut tissues only. TRP immunohistochemistry, in combination with preadsorption studies, suggests that APSGFLGMRamide and TPSGFLGMRamide are co-localized in the stomatogastric ganglion (STG), which is contained within the STNS. Exogenous application of TPSGFLGMRamide to the STG elicited a pyloric motor pattern that was identical to that elicited by APSGFLGMRamide, whereas APSGFLGMRG did not alter the pyloric motor pattern.

Identification, physiological actions, and distribution of VYRKPPFNGSIFamide (Val1)-SIFamide) in the stomatogastric nervous system of the American lobster Homarus americanus.

In this study, the peptide VYRKPPFNGSIFamide (Val(1)-SIFamide) was identified in the stomatogastric nervous system (STNS) of the American lobster, Homarus americanus, using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-Fourier transform mass spectrometry (MALDI-FTMS). When bath-applied to the stomatogastric ganglion (STG), synthetic Val(1)-SIFamide activated the pyloric motor pattern, increasing both burst amplitude and duration in the pyloric dilator (PD) neurons. To determine the distribution of this novel SIFamide isoform within the lobster STNS and neuroendocrine organs, a rabbit polyclonal antibody was generated against synthetic Val(1)-SIFamide. Whole-mount immunolabeling with this antibody showed that this peptide is widely distributed within the STNS, including extensive neuropil staining in the STG and commissural ganglia (CoGs) as well as immunopositive somata in the CoGs and the oesophageal ganglion. Labeling was also occasionally seen in the pericardial organ (PO), but not in the sinus gland. When present in the PO, labeling was restricted to fibers-of-passage and was never seen in release terminals. Adsorption of the antibody by either Val(1)-SIFamide or Gly(1)-SIFamide abolished all Val(1)-SIFamide staining within the STNS, including the STG neuropil, whereas adsorption by other lobster neuropeptides had no effect on immunolabeling. These data strongly suggest that the staining we report is a true reflection of the distribution of this peptide in the STNS. Collectively, our mass spectrometric, physiological, and anatomical data are consistent with Val(1)-SIFamide serving as a locally released neuromodulator in the lobster STG. Thus, our study provides the first direct demonstration of function for an SIFamide isoform in any species.