A new twist to "trophic support": the roles of supporting cell derived BDNF and NT3 in the postnatal inner ear

GUOQIANG WAN; GOMEZ CASATI, ME; LIBERMAN MC

Congreso; 38th Annual MidWinter Meeting Association for Research in Otolaryngolog; 2014

It is well established that the neurotrophic factors Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and Neurotrophin-3 (NT3) play critical roles in the developing inner ear, promoting the survival of embryonic auditory and vestibular sensory neurons and the establishment of their projections into their respective sensory epithelia. However, even though it is clear these factors continue to be expressed in the postnatal and adult inner ear, their roles after birth remain poorly understood. We have used cell-specific inducible gene recombination to test the roles of the endogenous neurotrophins in the postnatal mouse, and to identify the cells that act as sources of these factors. This talk will review our findings on the distinct roles each neurotrophin plays in inner ear synapse formation and maintenance as well as the identification of supporting cells as a key source of these neurotrophins in the postnatal inner ear.