At both three and nine weeks after guinea pigs’ cochleae were treated with nanoparticles loaded with Hes1 siRNA, the authors observed what are likely immature hair cells. MODIFIED FROM X. DU ET AL., MOLECULAR THERAPY, 2018Loud sounds, infections, toxins, and aging can all cause hearing loss by damaging so-called hair cells in the cochlea of the inner ear. In a study published today (April 18) in Molecular Therapy, researchers stimulated hair cell renewal with small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) delivered via nanoparticles to the cochlea of adult guinea pigs, restoring some of the animals’ hearing.
“There are millions of people suffering from deafness” caused by hair cell loss, says Zheng-Yi Chen, who studies hair cell regeneration at Harvard University and was not involved in the work. “If you can regenerate hair cells, then we really have potential to target treatment for those patients.”
Some vertebrates—chickens and zebrafish, for instance—regenerate their hair cells after damage. Hair cells of mammals, on the other hand, don’t sprout anew after being damaged, explaining why injuries can cause life-long hearing impairments. Recent research suggests that there might be a workaround, by manipulating signaling pathways that can lead to hair cell differentiation. That’s where Richard Kopke comes in.
“My interest in hair cell regeneration for restoring hearing got peaked while I was in the military because ...
