Our previous study showed that exposure to loud sound leading to hearing loss elongated the auditory nerve (AN) nodes of Ranvier and triggered notable morphological changes at paranodes and juxtaparanodes. Here we used computational modeling to examine how theoretical redistribution of voltage gated Na(+), Kv3.1, and Kv1.1 channels along the AN may be responsible for the alterations of conduction property following acoustic over-exposure. Our modeling study infers that changes related to Na(+) channel density (rather than the redistribution of voltage gated Na(+), Kv3.1, and Kv1.1 channels) is the likely cause of the decreased conduction velocity and the conduction block observed after acoustic overexposure (AOE).
Keywords: action potential; conduction block; conduction velocity; deafness; hearing loss; myelin domains; myelin sheath; node of Ranvier.