Professor of Auditory Neuroscience

• M.D. University of Jena, 1995


• Postdoct with E. Neher at the MPI for Biophysical Chemistry, 1994 - 1997


• Junior Group Leader at the at the MPI for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen 1997-2001


• Residency in Otolaryngology, University of Göttingen School of Medicine 1997-2002


• Group Leader at the Department of Otolaryngology, University of Göttingen School of Medicine since 2001

Major Research Interests

Our work focuses on the molecular physiology and pathology of sound encoding at the hair cell ribbon synapse. Molecular dissection and detailed physiological characterization of ribbon synapse function employ a spectrum of molecular, biophysical and physiological techniques such as mutagenesis (in collaboration with Brose), in vivo and in vitro viral gene transfer into hair cells and spiral ganglion neurons of mice, single cell RT-PCR, immunohistochemistry, confocal microscopy of hair cells, synaptic ultrastructure: STED & 4Pi microscopy; electron microscopy (in collaboration with Wichmann, Hell, Egner and Riedel), hair cell synaptic physiology: pre- or postsynaptic patch-clamp, on-cell and whole-cell membrane capacitance measurements, optical methods: Ca2+ and pHluorin imaging using confocal, epifluorescence and TIRF, mouse auditory systems physiology (recordings of otoacoustic emissions, endocochlear potential and electrocochleography and auditory brainstem responses), optogenetic stimulation of the cochlea for devising an optical cochlear implant, computational modeling (in collaboration with Wolf and Neef). We have physiologically and morphologically characterized synapses of wild-type and mutant mice with defects in hair cell synaptic coding from the molecular to the systems level. This way we have contributed to understanding hair cell ribbon synapse structure and function and initiated the concept of auditory synaptopathies


Homepage Department/Research Group

http://www.innerearlab.uni-goettingen.de/



Selected Recent Publications

• Pangrsic T, Lasarow L, Reuter K, Takago H, Schwander M, Riedel D, Frank T, Tarantino LM, Bailey JS, Strenzke N, Müller U, Brose N, Reisinger E*, Moser T* (2010) Hearing requires otoferlin-dependent efficient replenishment of synaptic vesicles in hair cells. Nat Neurosci 13(7), 869-76


• Frank T, Rutherford MA, Strenzke N, Pangrsic T, Khimich D, Fejtova A, Gundelfinger ED, Liberman MC, Harke B, Bryan KE, Lee A, Egner A, Riedel D, Moser T (2010) Bassoon and the synaptic ribbon organize Ca2+ channels and vesicles to add release sites and promote refilling. Neuron 68, 724–738


• Frank T, Khimich D, Neef A, Moser T (2009) Mechanisms contributing to synaptic Ca2+ signals and their heterogeneity in hair cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 106:4483-8


• Meyer AC, Frank T, Khimich D, Hoch G, Riedel D, Chapochnikov, NM, Yarin YM, Harke B, Hell S, Egner A, Moser, T (2009) Tuning of Synapse Number, Structure and Function in the Cochlea, Nat Neurosci 12, 444-53


• Roux I, Safieddine S, Nouvian R, Grati M, Simmler MC, Perfettini I, Le Gall M, Rostaing P, Hamard G,Triller A, Avan P, Moser T, Petit C (2006) Otoferlin, defective in DFNB9 deafness, is essential for the Ca2+-triggered synaptic exocytosis at the auditory hair cell ribbon synapse. Cell 127, 277-89