Hyperosmotic sisomicin infusion: a mouse model for hearing loss

Abstract

Losing either type of cochlear sensory hair cells leads to hearing impairment. Inner hair cells act as primary mechanoelectrical transducers, while outer hair cells enhance sound-induced vibrations within the organ of Corti. Established inner ear damage models, such as systemic administration of ototoxic aminoglycosides, yield inconsistent and variable hair cell death in mice. Overcoming this limitation, we developed a method involving surgical delivery of a hyperosmotic sisomicin solution into the posterior semicircular canal of adult mice. This procedure induced rapid and synchronous apoptotic demise of outer hair cells within 14 h, leading to irreversible hearing loss. The combination of sisomicin and hyperosmotic stress caused consistent and synergistic ototoxic damage. Inner hair cells remained until three days post-treatment, after which deterioration in structure and number was observed, culminating in a complete hair cell loss by day seven. This robust animal model provides a valuable tool for otoregenerative research, facilitating single-cell and omics-based studies toward exploring preclinical therapeutic strategies.