In the inner ear, spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs) are essential for transmitting sound information to the brain. Morphological, electrophysiological and transcriptomic characterisation subdivides them into two types: type I SGNs contact the inner hair cells that transduce and transmit sound information, while type II SGNs contact outer hair cells that have a critical role in sound amplification and tuning. Type I SGNs are further subdivided into types Ia, Ib, and Ic.  

The success of any therapeutic intervention aimed at recovering, enhancing or replacing auditory function rests on the presence of healthy and functional SGNs. To this end, general approaches like anti-inflammatory drugs are routinely used in the clinic, but these do not directly target SGNs.  

Using single-nuclei transcriptomics and smFISH, we are studying how each subtype of SGN is affected by acute or chronic hearing loss, including congenital hearing loss (Otof knock mouse), aminoglycoside-induced hair cell damage and noise-induced hearing loss. Our aim is to identify targets to potentially mitigate their indirect damage and improve their function.