It turns out that to hear a person yapping, you need a protein called Yap. Working as part of what is known as the Yap/Tead complex, this important protein sends signals to the hearing organ to attain the correct size during embryonic development, according to a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of the Sciences (PNAS) from the USC Stem Cell laboratory of Neil Segil.
HHF Connects with Researchers at the World’s Largest Conference on Hearing & Balance Science
Nearly 1,800 hearing and balance researchers and related experts gathered Jan. 25–29, 2020, in San Jose, CA for the 43rd annual Midwinter Meeting of the Association for Research in Otolaryngology (ARO), the largest academic association in the field. This included a number of Hearing Health Foundation (HHF)-affiliated researchers, members of the HHF Board of Directors and scientific advisory bodies, and HHF staff.
A Key Molecule Required for the Regeneration of Auditory Hair Cells in the Avian Inner Ear
Hair cells in the cochlea are the only cells in our body specialized to encode the energy in sound waves. As a result, we lose our hearing when hair cells die, which occurs during aging and after exposure to excessive noise or ototoxic drugs. Research indicates that no adult mammals replace their auditory hair cells once they are lost.