Objectives/Hypothesis Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a key component of bacterial endotoxins, activates macrophages and triggers the release of inflammatory cytokines in mammalian tissues. Recent studies have shown that intratympanic injection of LPS simulates acute otitis media (AOM) and results in morphological and functional changes in the inner ear. Here we established an AOM mouse model with LPS to investigate the uptake of ototoxic gentamicin in the inner ear, and elucidated the underlying mechanism by focusing on cochlear inflammation as a result of AOM. Study Design Preclinical rodent animal model. Methods Fluorescently tagged gentamicin (GTTR) was systemically administered to mice with AOM. Iba1‐positive macrophage morphology and inner ear cytokine profile were evaluated by immunofluorescence technique and a mouse cytokine array kit, respectively. Results We observed characteristic symptoms of AOM in the LPS‐treated ears with elevated hearing thresholds indicating a conductive hearing loss. More importantly, the LPS‐induced AOM activated cochlear inflammatory responses, manifested by macrophage infiltration, particularly in the organ of Corti and the spiral ligament, in addition to the up‐regulation of proinflammatory cytokines. Meanwhile, GTTR uptake in the stria vascularis and sensory hair cells from all the LPS‐treated ears was significantly enhanced at 24, 48, and 72‐hour post‐treatment, as the most prominent enhancement was observed in the 48‐hour group. Conclusion In summary, this study suggests that the pathological cochlea is more susceptible to ototoxic drugs, including aminoglycosides, and justified the clinical concern of aminoglycoside ototoxicity in the AOM treatment. Laryngoscope, 131:E2573–E2582, 2021

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Cochlear inflammatory response to various environmental insults, including acoustic and ototoxic overexposures, has been increasingly become a topic of interest. As the immune response is associated with both pathology and protection, targeting specific components of the immune response is expected to dissect the relationships between cellular damage and inflammation-associated protection and repair in the cochlea. Duffy antigen receptor for chemokines (DARC) is a member of a group of atypical chemokine receptors, and essential for chemokine-regulated leukocyte/neutrophil trafficking during inflammation. Previous studies have reported that Darc deficiency alters chemokine bioavailability and leukocyte homeostasis, leading to significant anti-inflammatory effects in tissues following injury. In this study, we have used Darc knockout mice to determine the impact of a deficiency in this gene on cochlear development, as well as function in cochlea subjected to various stresses. We observed that DARC is not required for normal development of cochlear function, as evidenced by typical hearing sensitivity in juvenile Darc-KO mice, as compared to wild type (WT) C57BL/6 mice. However, Darc-KO mice exhibited improved hearing recovery after intense noise exposure when compared to wild-type. The auditory brainstem response (ABR) threshold shift between KO and WT mice was most obvious at 1-week post-noise exposure. At cochlear locations above the frequency range of the energy band of damaging noise, both hair cell survival and ribbon synapse density were improved in Darc deficient animals. In addition, the mRNA levels of some major inflammatory effectors, including Mcp-1 and Gdf15, were altered in Darc-KO mice compared to control mice at 1, 3 and 7 days post-noise exposure. These data collectively suggest that the normal Darc-dependent inflammatory response slows down the process of hearing recovery, and exacerbates cellular damage in the cochlea after noise exposure.

Intratympanic injection of gentamicin has proven to be an effective therapy for intractable vestibular dysfunction. However, most studies to date have focused on the cochlea, so little is known about the distribution and uptake of gentamicin by the counterpart of the auditory system, specifically vestibular hair cells (HCs). Here, with a combination of in vivo and in vitro approaches, we used a gentamicin‐Texas Red (GTTR) conjugate to investigate the mechanisms of gentamicin vestibulotoxicity in the developing mammalian utricular HCs. In vivo, GTTR fluorescence was concentrated in the apical cytoplasm and the cellular membrane of neonatal utricular HCs, but scarce in the nucleus of HCs and supporting cells. Quantitative analysis showed the GTTR uptake by striolar HCs was significantly higher than that in the extrastriola. In addition, the GTTR fluorescence intensity in the striola was increased gradually from 1 to 8 days, peaking at 8–9 days postnatally. In vitro, utricle explants were incubated with GTTR and candidate uptake conduits, including mechanotransduction (MET) channels and endocytosis in the HC, were inhibited separately. GTTR uptake by HCs could be inhibited by quinine, a blocker of MET channels, under both normal and stressed conditions. Meanwhile, endocytic inhibition only reduced GTTR uptake in the CoCl2 hypoxia model. In sum, the maturation of MET channels mediated uptake of GTTR into vestibular HCs. Under stressed conditions, MET channels play a pronounced role, manifested by channel‐dependent stress enhanced GTTR permeation, while endocytosis participates in GTTR entry in a more selective manner.

Combining aminoglycosides and loop diuretics often serves as an effective ototoxic approach to deafen experimental animals. The treatment results in rapid hair cell loss with extended macrophage presence in the cochlea, creating a sterile inflammatory environment. Although the early recruitment of macrophages is typically neuroprotective, the delay in the resolution of macrophage activity can be a complication if the damaged cochlea is used as a model to study subsequent therapeutic strategies. Here, we applied a high dose combination of systemic gentamicin and furosemide in C57 BL/6 and CBA/CaJ mice and studied the ototoxic consequences in the cochlea, including hair cell survival, ribbon synaptic integrity, and macrophage activation up to 15-day posttreatment. The activity of macrophages in the basilar membrane was correlated to the severity of cochlear damage, particularly the hair cell damage. Comparatively, C57 BL/6 cochleae were more vulnerable to the ototoxic challenge with escalated macrophage activation. In addition, the ribbon synaptic deterioration was disproportionately limited when compared to the degree of outer hair cell loss in CBA/CaJ mice. The innate and differential otoprotection in CBA/CaJ mice appears to be associated with the rapid activation of cochlear macrophages and a certain level of synaptogenesis after the combined gentamicin and furosemide treatment.