Autoradiographic localization of vitamin A in the stria vascularis of the rat cochlea.

Vitamin A is present in the membranous cochlea at a higher concentration than in most other mammalian tissues. In order to localize this substance in the cochlea, 11(3)[H] retinyl acetate was administered to vitamin A-deficient rats. An autoradiographic study of these cochleas revealed labelling of the stria vascularis; the sensory cells and ganglion cells were not labelled.