A METHOD FOR THE INDUCTION OF A COCHLEA-SPECIFIC AUDITORY DEPRIVATIONIN THE GERBIL (MERIONES-UNGUICULATUS)

The neurophysiological effects of early electrical stimulation on the development and neural plasticity of the central auditory system in pr elingually deafened children with cochlear implants are still unknown. Many of these basic questions can be answered systematically only in animal experiments. Meriones unguiculatus is a well-established animal model in hearing research. Deafening is produced by a single intracoc hlear application of an ototoxic aminoglycoside antibiotic (neomycin s ulfate) on the 14th day after birth (DAB), i.e. before the late natura l onset of hearing on the 16th DAB. A single application of the antibi otic abolishes auditory brainstem responses (ABR) to clicks completely and reduces sensitivity to low frequency tonebursts by 50 dB SPL. Sca nning electron microscopy results show a destruction of the stereocili a of the inner and outer hair cells of the basal and medial cochlear t urn and a reduction of those in the apical turn. Our method avoids a s ystemic application of antibiotics and can be used in studies dealing with the consequences of different forms of auditory deprivation, neur onal compensation processes or with ontogenetic studies and chronic el ectrostimulation in an animal model.