Stiffness changes of the cupula associated with themechanics of hair cells in the fish lateral line

Cupular vibration in the lateral-line canal of fish was measured in response to motion of the fluid in the canal by laser-heterodyne interferometry. The results show that the mechanical output/input ratio of the cupula depends on the stimulus amplitude; the cupula thus behaves nonlinearly. The nonlinearity is due to the hair bundles, since it disappears when the cupula is uncoupled from the underlying hair cells. A model of cupular dynamics in which the behavior of the gating springs of the hair cells is incorporated predicts nonlinear responses that are similar to the measurements, suggesting that the nonlinear behavior of the cupula may be attributed to the opening and closing of the transduction channels of the hair cells.