Model of d.c. potentials in the cochlea: effects of voltage-dependent cilia stiffness.

The purpose of this study was to explore possible mechanisms for the generation of the summating potential. Computer simulation was used to model the effects of potential hair cell nonlinearities on extracellular and intracellular d.c. potentials in the cochlea. No one nonlinearity can account for both extracellular and intracellular experimental data. However, a model which includes two nonlinearities (voltage-dependent cilia stiffness and nonlinear transducer channel resistance) produces extracellular and intracellular responses which match experimental data very well.