Stria vascularis of cochlear duct
The stria vascularis of the cochlear duct is a capillary loop in the upper portion of the spiral ligament (the outer wall of the cochlear duct). It produces endolymph for the scala media in the cochlea.
| Stria vascularis of cochlear duct | |
|---|---|
![]() Cross section of the cochlea. | |
| Details | |
| System | cochlea |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | stria vascularis ductus cochlearis |
| MeSH | D013316 |
| NeuroLex ID | birnlex_2525 |
| TA98 | A15.3.03.096 |
| TA2 | 7028 |
| FMA | 77832 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
Structure
The stria vascularis is part of the lateral wall of the cochlear duct.[1] It is a somewhat stratified epithelium containing primarily three cell types:
- marginal cells,[1] which are involved in K+ transport, and line the endolymphatic space of the scala media.
- intermediate cells,[1] which are pigment-containing cells scattered among capillaries.
- basal cells,[1] which separate the stria vascularis from the underlying spiral ligament.[2] They are connected to basal cells with gap junctions.[1]
The stria vascularis also contains pericytes, melanocytes, and endothelial cells.[3] It also contains intraepithelial capillaries - it is the only epithelial tissue that is not avascular (completely lacking blood vessels and lymphatic vessels).
Function
The stria vascularis produces endolymph for the scala media, one of the three fluid-filled compartments of the cochlea.[4] This maintains the ion balance of the endolymph that surround inner hair cells and outer hair cells of the organ of Corti.[4] It secretes lots of K+,[1][4] and may also secrete H+.[1]
References
This article incorporates text in the public domain from page 1055 of the 20th edition of Gray's Anatomy (1918)
- Marcus, Daniel C. (2012). "37 - Acoustic Transduction". Cell Physiology Source Book (4th ed.). Academic Press. pp. 649–668. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-387738-3.00037-8. ISBN 978-0-12-387738-3.
- Ross, Michael H. Histology : a text and atlas / Michael H. Ross, Wojech Pawlina., -6th ed. p 940.
- Cummings (2001). "Chapter 140: Cochlear Anatomy and Central Auditory Pathways". Stria vascularis (PDF). Textbook of Otolaryngology. p. 3. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
- Hopkins, Kathryn (2015). "27 - Deafness in cochlear and auditory nerve disorders". Handbook of Clinical Neurology. Elsevier. pp. 479–494. doi:10.1016/B978-0-444-62630-1.00027-5. ISBN 978-0-444-62630-1. ISSN 0072-9752.
