摘要
Alternative splicing plays a fundamental role in the development and physiological function of the inner ear. Inner-ear-specific gene splicing is necessary to establish the identity and maintain the function of the inner ear. For example, exon 68 of Cadherin 23 （Cdh23） gene is subject to inner-ear-specific alternative splicing, and as a result, Cdh23（＋ 68） is only expressed in inner ear hair cells. Alternative splicing along the tonotopic axis of the cochlea contributes to frequency tuning, particularly in lower vertebrates, such as chickens and turtles. Differential splicing of Kcnmal, which encodes for the a subunit of the Ca2＋-activated K~ channel （BK channel）, has been suggested to affect the channel gating properties and is important for frequency tuning. Consequently, deficits in alternative splicing have been shown to cause hearing loss, as we can observe in Bronx Waltzer Cov） mice and Sfswap mutant mice. Despite the advances in this field, the regulation of alternative splicing in the inner ear remains elusive. Further investigation is also needed to clarify the mechanism of hearing loss caused by alternative splicing deficits.
Alternative splicing plays a fundamental role in the development and physiological function of the inner ear. Inner-ear-specific gene splicing is necessary to establish the identity and maintain the function of the inner ear. For example, exon 68 of Cadherin 23 （Cdh23） gene is subject to inner-ear-specific alternative splicing, and as a result, Cdh23（＋ 68） is only expressed in inner ear hair cells. Alternative splicing along the tonotopic axis of the cochlea contributes to frequency tuning, particularly in lower vertebrates, such as chickens and turtles. Differential splicing of Kcnmal, which encodes for the a subunit of the Ca2＋-activated K~ channel （BK channel）, has been suggested to affect the channel gating properties and is important for frequency tuning. Consequently, deficits in alternative splicing have been shown to cause hearing loss, as we can observe in Bronx Waltzer Cov） mice and Sfswap mutant mice. Despite the advances in this field, the regulation of alternative splicing in the inner ear remains elusive. Further investigation is also needed to clarify the mechanism of hearing loss caused by alternative splicing deficits.
基金
Our laboratory is supported by grants from the National Basic Research Program of China （No. 2013CB967700）, the National Natural Science Foundation of China （Nos. 31401007 and 31371355）, the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation （No. 2014M560550）, and the Fundamental Research Funds of Shandong University （Nos. 2014HW011 and 2015JC027）. The funders had no role in the preparation of the manuscript.
