Abstract
By measuring potential drop produced by a constant current across the cochlear partition between scala media and scala tympani of the basal turn in guinea pigs, the effective resistance was found to be 3500 to 5000 Ω. Simultaneous recording of the effective resistance and of the cochlear potentials, as the exploring electrode penetrated the organ of Corti, revealed that the reticular lamina possesses the main part of this resistance. When potassiumrich isotonic solution was injected into scala tympani, it caused a temporary increase of the effective resistance, accompanied by a temporary increase of the negative summating potential. The recovery of the summating potential preceded that of the effective resistance. The locus of this reversible change in the effective resistance across the cochlear partition was found to be in the reticular lamina, not in the basilar membrane. Increasing the potassium concentration in scala tympani served to abolish temporarily the action of the hair cells and also temporarily the electrical resistance of reticular lamina. The relation of the effective resistance across reticular lamina to other electrical events in the cochlea is discussed.
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