MAYURESH MORE 14110077 DATE: NOV 19, 2017

ES 6XX: BIOLOGICAL PHYSICS

ASSIGNMENT
Q1. Describe one biological term/phenomenon which you did not know previously and learned
about through the project.
Answer: I learnt about the importance of cochlea and its functioning. The cochlea is present in
the inner ear. It is a spiral organ that contains three chambers the scala vestibula, the scala
tympani and the scala media. The scala vestibula and the scala tympani are filled with a fluid
called perilymph and the scala media is filled with endolymph. The scala media has a basilar
membrane running through its center. Situated atop the basilar membrane is the Organ of Corti,
which is a sensory epithelial organ that contains fine stereocilia. The stereocilia are the sensory
receptors that are present on the hair cells. They deflect to a mechanical stimuli to alter the
concentration of cations in the hair cells and thus fire an action potential. The basilar membrane
is vibrated by the action of the stirrup. The stirrups action at the footplate transmits the vibration
to the oval window which is where the scala vestibula ends. The vibrations are transmitted
throughout the length of the cochlea. The scala tympani and the scala vestibule, in fact, form a
continuous duct by meeting at a common point at the helicotrema. The vibration of the fluid in
the scala vestibula and scala tympani lead to the movement of the basilar membrane as well. The
movement of the basilar membrane is detected by the hair cells. The basilar membrane has a
typical structure. The basilar membrane is narrow at the base and gets broader as we move
towards the centre of the spiral. The width at the centre of the cochlea is about five times the
width at the entrance. Also, the stiffness decreases as we move towards the apex or centre.
When a sound wave of a particular frequency is caught by the tympanic membrane, it leads to
the stirrup to incite the vibrations in the scala vestibula and scala tympani, which leads to the
movement of the basilar membrane. The hair cells play an important role here as they are the
ones which allow the waves to propagate. Their tuning is based on their location and the basilar
membranes location stiffness. Depending upon its frequency, the wave will lead to the vibration
of a certain part of the basilar membrane. Higher the frequency, lesser the part of the basilar
membrane it will vibrate. Frequencies lower than 20 Hz will vibrate the entire basilar membrane
and wont be registered.

Q2. Describe one physical formula/phenomenon which you did not know previously and
learned about through the project.
Answer: I learnt about the physics of sensitivity and electrical tuning due to electrical
resonance. The sensitivity is a measure of how small a stimuli can the ear detect. The sensitivity
should be governed by the nature of the stimuli and not by the physical limitations of the sensory
receptors for most efficient performance. Calculations show that the sensitivity of human hair
cells is limited by the Brownian motion. The energy imparted to each hair cell is of the order of
the energy of thermal motion. This implies that the humans are able to hear anything louder than
thermal noise. This is, however, the limit on the hair cells and not the entire auditory system. The
tuning in hair cells due to electrical resonance is an interesting finding. The experiments on
bullfrogs show that a constant-current pulse through the cell membrane generates a
sinusoidal response that resonates at 203 Hz. This frequency corresponds to the sound wave
which will excite the hair cell the most. When the hair cells were voltage-clamped, a current
trace was observed. The current trace was characterized by an early inward current and a late
outward current that settles exponentially at the end. The cause for the early inward current was
investigated by blocking the K+ channels with tetraethylammonium ions. This showed that the
early inward current is due to Ca2+ ions. The current is present throughout but is later masked by
the K+ current. The interplay between the K+ and Ca2+ currents leads to the tuning. The action is
similar to action potential firing except that here the action potential depends upon the strength
of the stimuli.

Q3. What did you learn while working on this project?

Answer:
The project was very useful in making us understand the functioning of the auditory
system. The main focus was on the importance of hair cells. The hair cells are shown to be very
vital to the functioning of auditory receptors in various vertebrates. The project also throws light
upon the transduction of the mechanical stimulus to electrical signal.
One main thing I learnt is the extent of tuning in humans and other vertebrates. The
tuning is necessary to distinguish various frequencies. The extent of tunings in humans is
meticulous and covers a very wide spectrum. It was fascinating to know, after learning about the
size of the cochlea and the amazing function it performs, that it really is a beautiful design. The
evolutionary process that lead to the formation of these hair cells or the entire auditory system
for that matter was one with complex developments over the years. There is striking similarity
between the hair cells of various animals, yet the domain of their functionality varies.
It is also astounding to learn that the same mechanism that operates to fire an action
potential is necessary for the functioning of the hair cells. Both these processes are quite similar
yet quite different in other aspects. The mechanical model for the tuning in human cochlea was
easily understood by the cited video.
The research paper chosen offers a wide insight on the mechanism, transduction model,
sensitivity and tuning. The paper was a tough reading. However, several attempts at reading led
to a better understanding each time. We then focused on individual parts that each of us were
supposed to present. The time I spent on learning about tuning and sensitivity, led to the
understanding of concepts like voltage-clamping method, tuning of hair cells, the way electrical
resonances work, etc.
 I feel and believe that the organization of sensory systems in organisms is indeed a
beautifully complex prospect to learn. We initially believed it would be easy to understand the
concept in one reading as we have come across the hair cell functioning in the Fundamental
Neuroscience course as well. However, our experience after reading tells a different story. The
sophistication of the experiments performed educates us on the importance to learn about our
own bodies.