Effect of gentamicin on the carbohydrates of the vestibular end organs: an investigation by the use of FITC-lectins

The effect of gentamicin on the glycoconjugates in the vestibular end organs is demonstrated using FITC-lectins. Five milligrams of gentamicin dissolved in 0.1 ml. saline was injected in a single dose into the middle ear of adult guinea pigs. Seven days after the injection, the fluorescent reactivity of Wheat germ agglutinin (WGA), Abrus precatorius agglutinin (APA), Concanavaline A (Con A), and Latyrus odoratus agglutinin (LOA) was decreased in the apical epithelial cell surface as well as in the gelatinous layer of the otolithic membrane of the maculae. In the cupula of the crista ampullaris, the reactivity for WGA and Con A was reduced. The otoconia, however, showed no detectable changes. This indicates that gentamicin may induce an altered carbohydrate metabolism resulting in a decrease of N-acetyl-glucosamine, mannose, galactose and glucose in the glycocalyx lining the epithelial cells as well as in the gelatinous layer of the otolithic membrane or cupula in the vestibular end organs.