Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 June 2011
To evaluate the effect of early postnatal air-conduction auditory deprivation on the development and function of the rat spiral ganglion.
Randomised animal study.
Sixty neonatal Sprague–Dawley rats were randomly divided into two groups: controls (n = 30) given regular chow and water ad libitum; and study animals (n = 30) fed within a soundproof chamber. Auditory brainstem response testing was conducted in both groups on postnatal day 42.
Auditory deprivation between postnatal days 12 and 42 resulted in an increased hearing threshold and reduced auditory brainstem response amplitudes, together with degeneration of type I spiral ganglion neurons and the presence of apoptotic cells.
Non-invasive auditory deprivation during a critical developmental period resulted in numerous changes in rat cochlear function and morphology.