Actin filaments in sensory hairs of inner ear receptor cells.
Receptor cells in the ear are excited through the bending of sensory hairs which project in a bundle from their surface. The individual stereocilia of a bundle contain filaments about 5 nm in diameter. The identity of these filaments has been investigated in the crista ampullaris of the frog and guinea pig by a technique of decoration with subfragment-1 of myosin (S-1). After demembranation with Triton X-100 and incubation with S-1, "arrowhead" formation was observed along the filaments of the stereocilia and their rootlets and also along filaments in the cuticular plate inside the receptor cell. The distance between attached S-1 was 35 nm and arrowheads pointed in towards the cell soma. It is concluded that the filaments of stereocilia are composed of actin.
D008841:Actin Cytoskeleton / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D000199:Actins / Q000032:analysis*; D000818:Animals; D003599:Cytoskeleton / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D003902:Detergents; D006198:Hair Cells, Auditory / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D006199:Hair Cells, Auditory, Inner / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D017830:Octoxynol; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; D011894:Rana pipiens; D011896:Rana temporaria
D000199:Actins; D003902:Detergents; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; D017830:Octoxynol