Figure 6
Dependence of the maximum transmembrane potential on porosity. (a) Vmax of the five SGNs (C1–C5) for the six modiolus samples (M1–M6, Fig. 5b) based on the RK porosity equations. Notice that the two sample pairs M2 and M3, M4 and M5, have approximately the same overall porosity but significantly different Vmax due to their different pore distributions. (b) Vmax of the same SGNs and modioli but calculated with the effective conductivity rather than the mapped conductivity as in (a). In contrast to that achieved with mapped conductivity, the Vmax are approximately the same for M2–M6. The ordinate in this panel is magnified relative to those in the other panels. (c) Vmax for the SGN C3 with modioli of approximately 25% (Fig. 5b) and 45% (Fig. 5e) porosity, where Vmax is calculated using the effective conductivity (EffC) method and the mapped conductivity using RK equations (RK). Notice that for M2–M6 and 45% porosity, the Vmax are similar when derived from EffC or MapC. (d) Vmax for the SGN C3 for the four porosity groups given in Fig. 5; Vmax is based on mapped conductivity. The continuous lines joining the Vmax values in the four panels do not represent a functional relationship among the modiolus samples; instead, they serve as a visual aid.
