Mechanobiology is the study of how cells sense and respond to mechanical forces. These processes are vital to many aspects of an animal's life, from hearing and touch to reproduction and survival. The McDermott Laboratory uses hair cells, the sensory receptors for hearing and balance, as a model for studying mechanobiology. We investigate how hair cells function and enable behavior in vertebrates and cephalopods, and how these mechanisms relate to human hearing and deafness. In zebrafish, a vertebrate, we focus on the mechanosensitive hair bundle and the machinery of mechanotransduction, including the TMC proteins at the core of the transduction channel. In squid, an invertebrate, we study the organization, subcellular anatomy, and molecular biology of cephalopod hair cells and what they reveal about the evolution of mechanosensation.
People
Congratulations!
June 2026
Max Ni for completing her master’s thesis and degree, and for her new position at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
James Kline for graduating with his Bachelor of Science and for starting the Master of Science program in Chemistry at Case Western Reserve University.
June 2025
Kristy Do for getting accepted into and attending the University of Toledo Medical School.
June 2024
Ananya Ram for getting accepted into and attending Case Western Reserve University Medical School.
Shreya Balaji for getting accepted into and attending the University of Cincinnati Medical School.
Chelsy Dai for getting accepted into and attending Harvard School of Public Health.
Sanjula Reddy for getting accepted into and attending Case Western Reserve University Dental School.
April, 2020
Kevin Chen, for his new position at Janelia/HHMI.
Hannah Weaver, for her acceptance to The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine.
Newest publications
An anatomical map of squid lateral lines.
Wang H, Wolff C, Pintozzi N, Petriv AM, McDermott BM Jr.
Curr Biol. 2026. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2026.07.056.
Asymmetric mechanotransduction by hair cells of the zebrafish lateral line.
Kindig K, Stepanyan R, Kindt KS, McDermott BM Jr.
Curr Biol. 2023. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.02.033.
Actin Crosslinking Family Protein 7 Deficiency Does Not Impair Hearing in Young Mice.
Gilbert BL, Zhu S, Salameh A, Sun S, Alagramam KN, McDermott BM Jr.
Front Cell Dev Biol. 2021. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2021.709442.
CONTACT
McDermott Laboratory
Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
11100 Euclid Ave., Mail Stop 5045
Wearn Bldg., Room 433
Cleveland, OH 44106