Helping prevent and cure deafness

Almost nine million people in the UK have a hearing impairment and in 8 out of 10 cases, this deafness is the result of irreversible damage to the sensory 'hair' cells of the inner ear. Scientists are examining the possibility that this damage might be prevented or reversed.

Deafness Research UK has always given the highest priority to this work, which could potentially lead to gene and drug therapy targeted at hair cells - a cure for deafness. The mapping of the human genome means that progress is faster than ever.

Deafness Research UK has:

• Awarded a three-year postgraduate studentship for the study of a newly discovered gene thought to play an important role in the development of sensory hair cells of the inner ear.
• Continued to support research into the possibility that genes active in hair cell development, which have remained dormant from the embryonic stage, might be reactivated. The study is concentrating on the functioning of two cell lines which have been implanted with genes known to be active in the early stages of development.
• Funded a Research Fellowship to continue a study of wound healing in the inner ear, in particular the role of supporting cells in repairing damage to the hair cells. Research is being undertaken on early postnatal cultures which are thought to offer a useful model for studies of the longer-term process of re-organisation that occurs in deaf individuals.
• Continued a study of the link between noise damage and the onset of hearing loss in later life which is of particular significance for those who have lost their hearing as a result of time spent in the armed forces or noisy industry. By using new techniques to analyse the results of hearing tests spanning many years in people who have been exposed to noise in early life, researchers aim to clarify the effect this damage has as we age.