Professor Andrew Crawford University positionProfessor DepartmentsDepartment of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience Home pageResearch ThemesInterestsI am interested in biophysics and physiology of the vertebrate inner ear , especially the cochlea. My research has focussed on the electrophysiology of cochlear hair cells with a view to understanding how they manage to respond to nanometre displacements at frequencies of many tens of kilohertz. Currently we are particularly interested in the motor and sensory functions of mammalian outer hair cells including the micromechanics of stereocilia and their role in both sensory transduction and force feedback. Damage to the cochlear hair cells, or the nerve fibres that supply them, is a common - maybe the most common - cause of adult hearing loss. Research Focus
EquipmentCalcium imaging Electrophysiological recording techniques Fluorescence microscopy Generation of rapid nanometre and piconewton stimuli Intracellular recording Measurement of rapid nanometre displacements and piconewton forces by cells and organelles Microscopy Whole cell patch clamp Collaborators
Associated News ItemsPublications2006Kennedy HJ, Evans MG, Crawford AC, Fettiplace R (2006), “Depolarization of cochlear outer hair cells evokes active hair bundle motion by two mechanisms.” J Neurosci 26(10):2757-66 Details 2005Kennedy HJ, Crawford AC, Fettiplace R (2005), “Force generation by mammalian hair bundles supports a role in cochlear amplification.” Nature 433(7028):880-3 Details Ricci AJ, Kennedy HJ, Crawford AC, Fettiplace R (2005), “The transduction channel filter in auditory hair cells.” J Neurosci 25(34):7831-9 Details 2003Kennedy HJ, Evans MG, Crawford AC, Fettiplace R (2003), “Fast adaptation of mechanoelectrical transducer channels in mammalian cochlear hair cells.” Nat Neurosci 6(8):832-6 Details Ricci AJ, Crawford AC, Fettiplace R (2003), “Tonotopic variation in the conductance of the hair cell mechanotransducer channel.” Neuron 40(5):983-90 Details |