Human blood-labyrinth barrier on a chip: a unique in vitro tool for investigation of BLB properties.

ABSTRACT: Hearing loss is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide, usually as a result of hair cell damage in the inner ear due to aging, acoustic trauma, or exposure to antibiotics or chemotherapy. No drug therapies can protect or restore hearing and current in vitro and animal models used in drug discovery have a very low success rate, mostly due to major differences in anatomy and accessibility of the inner ear environment between species. The blood-labyrinth barrier (BLB) in the stria vascularis is a highly specialized capillary network that controls exchanges between the blood and interstitial space in the cochlea. The BLB is critical for normal hearing, functioning as a physical, transport, and metabolic barrier. To address its complexity and accessibility, we created the firs

SUBMITTER: Sekulic M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10450574 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature