Loss of Myh14 Increases Susceptibility to Noise-Induced Hearing Loss in CBACaJ Mice

Abstract EN

MYH14 is a member of the myosin family, which has been implicated in many motile processes such as ion-channel gating, organelle translocation, and the cytoskeleton rearrangement.

Mutations in MYH14 lead to a DFNA4-type hearing impairment.

Further evidence also shows that MYH14 is a candidate noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) susceptible gene.

However, the specific roles of MYH14 in auditory function and NIHL are not fully understood.

In the present study, we used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to establish a Myh14 knockout mice line in CBA/CaJ background (now referred to as Myh14−/− mice) and clarify the role of MYH14 in the cochlea and NIHL.

We found that Myh14−/− mice did not exhibit significant hearing loss until five months of age.

In addition, Myh14−/− mice were more vulnerable to high intensity noise compared to control mice.

More significant outer hair cell loss was observed in Myh14−/− mice than in wild type controls after acoustic trauma.

Our findings suggest that Myh14 may play a beneficial role in the protection of the cochlea after acoustic overstimulation in CBA/CaJ mice.