Fig. 5

Representative sections of the cochleae of animals in different experimental groups. CpdA 3 mg/kg (a, c, e), control (b, d) or dexamethasone as the current gold standard (f). The histopathology of the stria vascularis (a, b) and spiral ligament (c-f) is depicted. a Detachment of the stria vascularis was noted in a high proportion of animals treated with CpdA. Asterisks (*) mark the gap between marginal/intermediate cells and basal cells of the stria vascularis (sv) bordering the spiral ligament (sl). b The stria vascularis of the majority of control and dexamethasone-treated animals did not show any signs of detachment. c, d Accumulation of pigment in the spiral ligament (arrows pointing to pigment granules) was seen in relatively more CpdA-treated animals (c), compared to control or dexamethasone-treated animals (d). e, f Nuclei of fibrocytes type III in the spiral ligament show a high degree of condensation (e, arrow heads), while appearing largely unaffected in control or dexamethasone-treated animals (f). Scale bars = 50 μm