Hair cell maturation is differentially regulated along the tonotopic axis of the mammalian cochlea

Key points Outer hair cells (OHCs) enhance the sensitivity and the frequency tuning of the mammalian cochlea. Similar to the primary sensory receptor, the inner hair cells (IHCs), the mature functional characteristics of OHCs are acquired before hearing onset. We found that OHCs, like IHCs, fire spontaneous Ca 2+ ‐induced action potentials (APs) during immature stages of development, which are driven by Ca V 1.3 Ca 2+ channels. We also showed...