Voltage- and Calcium-Dependent Motility of Saccular Hair Bundles

Active bundle motility, which is hypothesized to supply feedback for mechanical amplification of signals, is thought to enhance sensitivity and sharpen tuning in vestibular and auditory organs. To study active hair bundle motility, we combined high-speed camera recordings of bullfrog sacculi, which were mounted in a two-compartment chamber, and voltage-clamp of the hair cell membrane potential. Using this paradigm, we measured three types of bundle motions: 1) spontaneous oscillations which can be analyzed to measure the physiological operating range of the transduction channel; 2) a sustained quasi-static movement of the bundle that depends on membrane potential; and 3) a fast, transient and asymmetric movement that resets the bundle position and depends on changes in the membrane potential. These data support a role for both calcium and voltage in the transduction-channel function.