Cochlear Gene Therapy
- 1Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Columbia University Medical Center, New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, New York 10032
- 2Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94117
- Correspondence: lrl2125{at}columbia.edu
Abstract
Over 450 million people worldwide suffer from hearing loss, leading to an estimated economic burden of ∼$750 billion. The past decade has seen significant advances in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms that contribute to hearing, and the environmental and genetic factors that can go awry and lead to hearing loss. This in turn has sparked enormous interest in developing gene therapy approaches to treat this disorder. This review documents the most recent advances in cochlear gene therapy to restore hearing loss, and will cover viral vectors and construct designs, potential routes of delivery into the inner ear, and, lastly, the most promising genes of interest.
