Cochlear implantation has become the most effective treatment method for patients with profound and total hearing loss. However, its therapeutic efficacy is dependent on the number and normal physiological function of cochlear implant-targeted spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs). Electrical stimulation can be used as an effective cue to regulate the morphology and function of excitatory cells. Therefore, it is important to develop an efficient cochlear implant electroacoustic stimulation (EAS) system to study the behavior of SGNs. In this work, we present an electrical stimulation system constructed by combining a cochlear implant and a conductive Ti3C2Tx MXene-matrigel hydrogel. SGNs were cultured in the Ti3C2Tx MXene-matrigel hydrogel and exposed to electrical stimulation transduced by the cochlear implant. It was demonstrated that low-frequency stimulation promoted the growth cone development and neurite outgrowth of SGNs as well as signal transmission between cells. This work may have potential value for the clinical application of the Ti3C2Tx MXene hydrogel to optimize the postoperative listening effect of cochlear implantation and benefit people with sensorineural hearing loss.
Keywords: Ti3C2Tx MXene; cochlear implant; electroacoustic stimulation; hydrogel; spiral ganglion neuron.