Leiden University Scholarly Publications

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Locher, heiko (2015)

Cellular development of the human cochlea and the regenerative potential of hair follicle bulge stem cells

Doctoral Thesis
The embryonic development of the human cochlea (the organ of hearing) has been investigated for over one hundred years. However, little is still known about the development on a cellular and protein level, which is important to better understand etiologies and pathologies of various types of sensorineural hearing loss. Knowledge of the normal gene expression patterns and cell fate specification in the human cochlea has therefore the potential to aid in the development of gene and cell-based therapeutic strategies. For this reason, we acquired a series of human fetal cochlea of different stages of gestation and investigated several aspects of the normal development of the human cochlea such as the hair cells, the spiral ganglion neurons and the stria vascularis. Also, we investigated the neural crest stem cells residing in the hair follicle bulge. We showed that a protein (TUBB3) often used in immunochemistry to detect a neuron is also expressed both in skin and hair follicle...Show moreThe embryonic development of the human cochlea (the organ of hearing) has been investigated for over one hundred years. However, little is still known about the development on a cellular and protein level, which is important to better understand etiologies and pathologies of various types of sensorineural hearing loss. Knowledge of the normal gene expression patterns and cell fate specification in the human cochlea has therefore the potential to aid in the development of gene and cell-based therapeutic strategies. For this reason, we acquired a series of human fetal cochlea of different stages of gestation and investigated several aspects of the normal development of the human cochlea such as the hair cells, the spiral ganglion neurons and the stria vascularis. Also, we investigated the neural crest stem cells residing in the hair follicle bulge. We showed that a protein (TUBB3) often used in immunochemistry to detect a neuron is also expressed both in skin and hair follicle melanocytes in humans meaning that the proposed neural crest stem cell residing in the hair follicle bulge might need revision.Show less
Melanocytes
TUUB3
Fetal
Human
Development
Hearing loss
Cochlea
All authors
Locher, heiko
Supervisor
Frijns, J.H.M.
Co-supervisor
Huisman, M.A.; Chuva de Sousa Lopes, S.M.
Qualification
Doctor (dr.)
Awarding Institution
Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC), Leiden University
Date
2015-12-08

Funding

Sponsorship
Stichting Het Heinsius-Houbolt Fonds