Göttingen research team gains new insights into the sense of hearing
Hearing begins with the stretching of elastic molecular “springs” that open ion channels in the sensory hair cells of the ear. For decades, researchers have known that these gating springs must exist, but they could not find them. A team from the Cluster of Excellence Multiscale Bioimaging (MBExC) in Göttingen has now discovered just such a spring for the first time. Their findings shed new light on our understanding of the sense of hearing and the function of ion channels. They have been published in the journal Nature Neuroscience.
The 3D model helps researchers to better understand the structure and function of the mechanical spring on the ion channel. From left to right: Prof. Martin Göpfert, Dr. Thomas Effertz, Dr. Philip Hehlert. (Photo: Philip Hehlert)
