Developing a Molecular Therapeutic for Hearing Loss

The last 30 years have seen an explosion in our understanding of the molecular basis of hearing loss. The pathways underlying the development of the ear as well as the numerous molecular components that make hearing work have been extensively explored. So far, this has not translated into the development of new types of therapeutics for hearing loss, which is actually the most common neurodegenerative disease in humans. A significant portion of our scientific focus in hearing research has been on understanding the pathways that control the genesis of auditory and vestibular hair cells in an effort to apply this in patients. This chapter reviews some of the key discoveries in patterning of the neurosensory epithelium of the inner ear and discusses the factors that go into transforming that information into a potential drug that is testable in human subjects.