Tectorial Membrane Stiffness Gradients

Electrokinetic properties of the mammalian tectorial membrane.

The tectorial membrane (TM) clearly plays a mechanical role in stimulating cochlear sensory receptors, but the presence of fixed charge in TM constituents suggests that electromechanical properties also may be important. Here, we measure the fixed charge density of the TM and show that this density of fixed charge is sufficient to affect mechanical properties and to generate electrokinetic moti...

The tectorial membrane of the rat.

Cochlear Mechanics Distributed Impedance Model of Tectorial Membrane Traveling Waves

The mammalian cochlea is a remarkable sensor that can detect motions smaller than the diameter of a hydrogen atom and can perform high-quality spectral analysis to discriminate as many as 30 frequencies in the interval of a single semitone (Kossl and Russell, 1995; Dallos, 1996). These extraordinary properties of the hearing organ depend on traveling waves of motion that propagate along the bas...

Tectorial membrane morphological variation: effects upon stimulus frequency otoacoustic emissions.

The tectorial membrane (TM) is widely believed to play an important role in determining the ear's ability to detect and resolve incoming acoustic information. While it is still unclear precisely what that role is, the TM has been hypothesized to help overcome viscous forces and thereby sharpen mechanical tuning of the sensory cells. Lizards present a unique opportunity to further study the role...

Tectorial membrane injury: frequently overlooked in pediatric traumatic head injury.

REHs and tectorial membrane injuries are rare complications of pediatric head and neck injuries. We aim to describe the neuroimaging findings in pediatric REHs, to summarize the mechanism of injury, and to correlate the imaging findings with the clinical presentation. We retrospectively evaluated CT and/or MR imaging studies of 10 children with traumatic REH. Most patients were involved in MVAs...