Can Stem Cells Cure Deafness?
See also our coverage of
hair cell regeneration, some of which which includes stem cell
applications.
November 2005 - Stem cells could
cure deafness in ten years.
November 2005 - You may remember Stefan Heller as
the researcher who identified stem cells within the inner ear back in
2002. Following his discovery, the idea of treating hearing loss using
stem cells really took off. Dr. Heller has just moved his lab to
Stanford to take advantage of California's progressive views on stem
cell research. Here's the press release, which
includes a good overview of his current work and his plans for future
research.
August 2006 - Stem Cells May Be Key
To Deafness Cure
December
2006 - First blood and bone stem cell research on deafness
February
2007 - Stem Cell Transplants Possible
Hearing Loss Treatment
February 2007 - Tech
Could End Deafness
April
2007 - Cochlear Stem Cells May Lead to
Repaired Hearing
June 2007 - Stem Cell Therapy
Recovers Lost Hearing
October 2007 - Stem Cell Research
Reveals Improved Hearing Possible
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scientists
at Britain's Sheffield University are hoping that stem cell research
could lead to a cure for deafness within ten years! Laboratory tests
have demonstrated that embryonic stem cells have the capability to
regrow in damaged areas; animal testing is planned within two years.
Here's
the full story.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
August
2006
In a
dusty, cluttered lab at Stanford University, a team of young scientists is
on a quest. Curing deafness is the goal, reports CBS News correspondent
Elizabeth Kaledin, and Stefan Heller says stem cells hold the key. Heller
and his entire team were recruited away from Harvard, and they've made a
breakthrough discovery: They've found that stem cells have the capacity to
regenerate in the inner ear.
Full Story
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
December
2006
Deafness
Research UK is funding a new research programme that will be the first
to try and develop a cure for deafness using stem cells taken from
umbilical cord blood or bone marrow. This three-year project will be
based in the Centre for Stem Cell Biology at the University of Sheffield
and has been made possible by a £126,000 charitable donation from
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). It
will be the first research to use these promising new lines of stem
cells, which are less controversial than stem cells derived from human
embryos, in the search for a cure for deafness. Full
Story
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
February
2007
"We
have a good chance of getting normal hearing back in normal ears,"
said Richard Schmiedt, an otolaryngology professor at the Medical
University of South Carolina. The stem-cell approach involves restoring
the tiny "hair cells" in the ear that convert sound into
electrical impulses. When the cells die, people permanently lose their
hearing. Bringing back the cells through stem-cell transplants, along
with a shock of electricity, could restore hearing, scientists say. At
Stanford University, professor Stefan Heller, who discovered stem cells
in the inner ear, believes they can be used to cure deafness in mice
within five years. Heller and his colleagues are trying to learn from
birds, which do not become deaf, the secret genetic recipe for warding
off hearing loss. Full
Story
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
June 2007
Stem cells injected into the inner ear survived in
half of the injured rats, where they migrated away from the site of
injection toward the injured region within the inner ear. These stem cells
divided in the new environment and expressed several proteins necessary
for hearing, suggesting tissue-specific differentiation. Further,
transplanted cells that migrated to the damaged area of the inner ear
displayed shape similar to that of cochlear fibrocytes. Importantly,
transplanted rats exhibited faster recovery from hearing loss,
particularly in the high frequency range, which is difficult to restore by
natural regeneration. Stem cell migration into the damaged area of the
inner ear improved hearing of high frequency sound (40 kHz) by 23%
compared to natural recovery in untreated animals.
Full Story
