Activity Deprivation-Induced Transcriptional Changes in the P21 Cochlear Nucleus . Mus musculus

We analyzed whether cochlear removal-induced transcriptional changes in the cochlear nucleus (CN) were due to loss of electrical activity in the 8th nerve. Pharmacological activity blockade of the auditory nerve for 24 h resulted in similar expression changes for only a subset of genes. Thus, an additional factor not dependent on action potential-mediated signaling must also regulate transcriptional responses to deafferentation in the CN. Overall design: TTX was infused into the cochlea unilaterally via osmotic pumps to block activity in the 8th nerve. CN tissue was dissected out from 10-12 mice per replicate and pooled. Three biological replicates were performed. Gene expression was compared between the ipsilateral and contralateral CN tissue to identify genes transcriptionally regulated after activity deprivation.