title: Neurotrophic effects of taurine on spiral ganglion neurons in vitro.
abstract: Taurine is an ubiquitary expressed aminosulfonic acid known to play an important role in the development and maintenance of the nervous system. It is distributed in the inner ear, contributing toward the protection of hair cells against aminoglycoside-induced or bilirubin-induced ototoxicity. Thus, the question arises whether taurine also has an influence on the cellular integrity of the auditory neurons. To test this hypothesis, isolated cells of the spiral ganglion were cocultured with taurine or the neurotrophic factors brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) as controls. The analysis included cellular survival rate and neurite outgrowth. With application of taurine, the survival of glial cells and neurons was stimulated in a similar pattern, whereas BDNF and NT-3 only effected neuronal survival. Furthermore, administration of taurine resulted in enhanced neurite outgrowth comparable with the effect of the neurotrophic factors. These new insights on the neuromodulatory effects of taurine on auditory neurons suggest the use of this aminosulfonic acid to reduce the degeneration of auditory neurons in sensorineural hearing loss. Consecutively, a new therapeutical approach for the therapy of hearing impairment could be discussed.
authors.affiliation: aDepartment of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, Plastic, Aesthetic and Reconstructive Head and Neck Surgery, Comprehensive Hearing Center bInstitute for Clinical Neurobiology, University of Wuerzburg cDepartment of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, Head and Neck Surgery 'Otto Körner', Rostock University Medical Center, Rostock, Germany.
authors.forename: Kristen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Rak
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Völker
authors.forename: Lukas
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jürgens
authors.forename: Agmal
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Scherzad
authors.forename: Philipp
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Schendzielorz
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Radeloff
authors.forename: Sibylle
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jablonka
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mlynski
authors.forename: Rudolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hagen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor / Q000494:pharmacology; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D016501:Neurites / Q000187:drug effects; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000187:drug effects; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects*; D020933:Neurotrophin 3 / Q000494:pharmacology; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013136:Spiral Ganglion / Q000187:drug effects*; D013654:Taurine / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; D020933:Neurotrophin 3; D013654:Taurine