The tectorial membrane is an extracellular matrix of the inner ear that lies over the surface of the organ of Corti. It is composed of proteins that are typically found in cartilage and a number of glycoproteins that are only expressed at high levels in the inner ear. Mutations in many of the tectorial membrane proteins cause various forms of hearing loss in humans, attesting to the importance of this structure for normal hearing. Quite how this matrix, the physical properties of which are very precisely graded along the length of the cochlea, forms on the surface of a polarised epithelium remains largely unknown. Likewise extent to which the integrity of this structure is maintained for the lifetime of an organism is poorly documented. Data will be presented that begins to address these issues.
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