Kinocilia heights on utricular hair cells

Kinocilium height is a critical determinant of any hair cell's response to head movement, but accurate measurements of kinocilia heights have been dif ficult to achieve. We have developed a method for measuring kinocilia heigh ts that combines immunochemical staining with three-dimensional morphometry , and we have used this method to measure kinocilia in the utricle of a tur tle, Pseudemys scripta. Our results suggest that kinocilium height varies w ith position on the utricular epithelium and that kinocilia in the striola are significantly shorter than kinocilia in other regions of the utricle. ( C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.