The potassium channel subunit K_V1.8 (<i>Kcna10</i>) is essential for the distinctive outwardly rectifying conductances of type I and II vestibular hair cells.

ABSTRACT: In amniotes, head motions and tilt are detected by two types of vestibular hair cells (HCs) with strikingly different morphology and physiology. Mature type I HCs express a large and very unusual potassium conductance, g_K,L, which activates negative to resting potential, confers very negative resting potentials and low input resistances, and enhances an unusual non-quantal transmission from type I cells onto their calyceal afferent terminals. Following clues pointing to K_V1.8 (Kcna10) in the Shaker K channel family as a candidate g_K,L subunit, we compared whole-cell voltage-dependent currents from utricular HCs of K_V1.8-null mice and littermate controls. We found that K_V1.8 is necessary not just for g_K,L but also for

SUBMITTER: Martin HR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11614384 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature