This image shows mature cochlear heminodes beneath hair cells and nodes of Ranvier within osseous spiral lamina in adult mouse auditory nerve. The nodes and their flanking paranodes were immunolabeled for neuronal cell adhesion molecule (NrCAM, green) and contactin 1 (Cntn1, red), respectively. Myelin of the auditory nerve (following the heminodes) was detected by immunolabeling for myelin basic protein (MBP, blue; nuclei were counterstained with DAPI also in blue). The integrity of myelin and nodal structures in the cochlea is needed for fast transfer of sound information from the hair cells to the brain. (pages 2551–2568).