title: Proliferating hair cell precursors in the ear of a postembryonic fish are replaced after elimination by cytosine arabinoside.
abstract: Identified, proliferating S-phase cells in the postembryonic fish ear are known to be the precursors to new hair cells. It is not known, however, whether the ability to proliferate is restricted to a small population of cells. The ability of cells that are not normally in the cell cycle to enter S-phase was examined using the antimitotic drug cytosine arabinoside (ara-C). The normal population of S-phase cells in the saccule was destroyed by a single large dose of ara-C. Two weeks later, the presence of S-phase cells was evaluated using the S-phase marker bromodeoxyuridine. The results strikingly demonstrate that S-phase cells are replaced, since S-phase cells returned to the saccule in the same number as found in normal fish. The data are interpreted to suggest that a large number of nonsensory support cells are capable of entering the cell cycle and that some mechanism must regulate which of these are actually cycling at any given time.
authors.affiliation: Department Zoology, University Maryland, College Park 20742, USA.
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Presson
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mentz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002455:Cell Division / Q000502:physiology; D003561:Cytarabine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005399:Fishes / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006198:Hair Cells, Auditory / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*; D016196:S Phase / Q000187:drug effects*; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D003561:Cytarabine