UNLIKE other mammals, bats regenerate the hair cells in their inner ears to
replace those that they lose in old age, according to a team of biologists in
Denmark.
The number of hair cells in the inner ear of many mammals, including humans
and mice, declines with age, leading to hearing loss. But when Mette Kirkegaard
and J酶rgen J酶rgensen of the University of 脜rhus examined the inner ears of
Daubenton鈥檚 bat (Myotis daubentonii), they found newly developing hair
cells in addition to the ones that were dying off (Naturwissenschaften,
vol 87, p 83).
Bats are relatively long-lived mammals. 鈥淲e believe that this is the first
demonstration of hair cell turnover in a mammal,鈥� says J酶rgensen.
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