Noise, homemade
The ear has a body’s own mechanism, which is damage caused by loud noises can prevent.
The ear can reduce the hearing and thereby protect against noise. The scientists concluded from experiments with mice, in which the mechanism successfully against permanent hearing loss protected. Previously this was not known exactly why the ear can reduce its sensitivity. Perhaps with this principle might once drugs are developed, the concerts or on construction sites to protect against noise, say the researchers.
Triggered the protective mechanism of signals from nerve cells in the brain. A protein called nAChR receives these signals and slows down the activity of hair cells in the inner ear. These hair cells are the acoustic interface of the ear: They convert sound waves into electrical impulses to the nerves on the brain running. Are they less active, the ear hears less?
The researchers used mice for their experiment, the nAChR-genetically modified protein had been. It curtailed hair cells permanently, even without a command from the brain. As expected, heard these mice compared with normal cousins much worse. The researcher’s beschallten the mice with 100 decibels, as much as in discos booms from the speakers. This has the ear of the animals will be permanently damaged, but less strongly than in mice without the genetic modification. The mechanism is relatively simple, so there is a real chance in the future to find drugs that can prevent hearing loss, say the researchers.