CRISPR strategy could restore delayed-onset hearing loss

By Maggie Chen – Drug Discovery Network –

Previous genome editing techniques only work when delivered early in life. This approach could help preserve hearing that is lost later on.

When babies pop into the world, they almost immediately undergo a battery of tests. Among these tests is one that measures hearing. It is critical to catch hearing loss quickly because the ear is the gateway to developing speech and language skills. “It’s important to intervene as early as possible,” said Zheng-Yi Chen, a biologist at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Institute.

While some babies are born completely deaf, others are born with hearing loss that worsens over time. For each kind of hearing loss, there are some interventions that can help such as sign language, hearing aids, or cochlear implants. But current gene therapies, which have been touted to have enormous potential for genetically-linked hearing loss, may not work as well. This is because gene therapies are often tested in baby mice, whose ears develop after birth, as opposed to humans, whose ears are fully developed during birth.

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