Professor Andrew Crawford

I am interested in the biophysics and physiology of the vertebrate inner ear, especially the cochlea. My research has focussed on the electrophysiology of cochlear hair cells with a view to understanding how they manage to respond to nanometre displacements and at frequencies of many tens of kilohertz. We are particularly interested in the motor and sensory functions of mammalian outer hair cells including the micromechanics of stereocilia and their role in both sensory transduction and force feedback. Damage to the cochlear hair cells, or the nerve fibres that supply them, is a common – maybe the most common – cause of adult hearing loss.