Otoacoustic emissions reveal the micromechanical role of organ-of-Corti cytoarchitecture in cochlear amplification

Abstract

The intricate, crystalline cytoarchitecture of the mammalian organ of Corti presumably plays an important role in cochlear amplification. As currently understood, the oblique, Y-shaped arrangement of the outer hair cells (OHCs) and phalangeal processes of the Deiters cells serves to create differential “push–pull” forces that drive the motion of the basilar membrane via the spatial feedforward and/or feedbackward of OHC forces. In concert with the cochlear traveling wave, the longitudinal separation between OHC sensing and forcing creates phase shifts that yield a form of negative damping, amplifying waves as they propagate. Unlike active forces that arise and act locally, push–pull forces are inherently directional—whereas forward-traveling waves are boosted, reverse-traveling waves are squelched. Despite their attractions, models based on push–pull amplification must contend with otoacoustic emissions (OAEs), whose existence implies that amplified energy escapes from the inner ear via mechanisms involving reverse traveling waves. We analyze hybrid local/push–pull models to determine the constraints that reflection-source OAEs place on the directionality of cochlear wave propagation. By implementing a special force-mixing control knob, we vary the mix of local and push–pull forces while leaving the forward-traveling wave unchanged. Consistency with stimulus-frequency OAEs requires that the active forces underlying cochlear wave amplification be primarily local in character, contradicting the prevailing view. By requiring that the oblique cytoarchitecture produce predominantly local forces, we reinterpret the functional role of the Y-shaped geometry, proposing that it serves not as a push–pull amplifier, but as a mechanical funnel that spatially integrates local OHC forces.