A differentially amplified motion in the ear for near-threshold sound detection
The ear is a remarkably sensitive pressure fluctuation detector. In guinea pigs, behavioral measurements indicate a minimum detectable sound pressure of ~20 μPa at 16 kHz. Such faint sounds produce 0.1-nm basilar membrane displacements, a distance smaller than conformational transitions in ion channels. It seems that noise within the auditory system would swamp such tiny motions, making weak sounds imperceptible. Here we propose a new mechanism contributing to a resolution of this problem and validate it through direct measurement. We hypothesized that vibration at the apical side of hair cells is enhanced compared with that at the commonly measured ...
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