Research lines into Hearing Loss

There is currently no curative treatment for sensorineural hearing loss and it can only be mitigated with devices such as hearing aids and cochlear implants. Pharmacological, genetic and stem cell research into new preventive, restorative and regenerative therapies is essential.

Pharmacological research (CIBERER study):

• A study into the efficacy of antioxidant, N-acetylcysteine and resveratrol coadministration to prevent or attenuate the damage caused by the administration of the ototoxic agents kanamycin and furosemide in rats.
• A study into the efficacy of administering inhibitors of TGF-β (an inflammatory response mediator) to prevent or modulate morphological and functional changes in the cochlea model of noise-induced hearing loss in mice.

Genetic and stem cell research (GENYO study)

Studies are underway to prevent the loss of cochlear hair cells, or to create a model for regenerating these cells and damaged spiral ganglion nerves using stem cells (SC) and gene therapy (i.e., the introduction of specific genes within a patient’s cells to combat certain diseases).

This inability for spontaneous and endogenous proliferation (originating or produced inside the organism) means exogenous cells (originating or produced outside the organism) must be used; alternatively, support cells can be activated in situ using gene therapy to induce their differentiation into hair cells.

Ongoing research in this area is endeavouring to ensure the treatment of sensorineural hearing loss develops into a combination of gene therapy, cell therapy and cochlear implants.