At the time of his death, Hudspeth was pursuing new approaches to restoring hearing through hair cell regeneration, and his lab had recently published work demonstrating the first method for keeping a mammalian cochlea alive outside of the body—an innovation that will provide future researchers with an unprecedented means for studying the cochlea’s live biomechanics.
What Birds Teach Us About Restoring Hearing
Research has not yet fully explained the mechanisms behind efficient hair cell regeneration in birds, but recent discoveries have sparked multiple promising research directions that might bring us closer to developing treatments for humans.
Zebrafish Gene Discovery Reveals Clues for Hearing Restoration
New research has identified how two distinct genes guide the regeneration of sensory cells in zebrafish. The discovery improves our understanding of how regeneration works in zebrafish and may guide future studies on hearing loss and regenerative medicine in mammals, including humans.
Webinar Recap: Birds Show the Way to Hair Cell Regeneration
We can now treat otoferlin-related hearing loss. In the next 10 years, we will continue to reach more groups with specific causes of hearing loss—momentum that will help accelerate the process for everyone.
In Memoriam: George A. Gates, M.D., 1935–2025
George Arthur Gates, M.D., the inaugural medical director of Hearing Health Foundation’s Hearing Restoration Project (HRP), passed away on February 8, 2025.
A New Tool for Targeting Only Supporting Cells in the Inner Ear
This research shows that it is possible to design gene therapies for the ear that are carefully targeted at supporting cells, an essential first step in applying targeted gene therapies to treat hearing loss in humans.
Study Identifies Gene Regulators Behind Hearing Regeneration
Their experiments revealed a class of DNA control elements known as “enhancers” that, after injury, amplify the production of a protein called ATOH1, which in turn induces a suite of genes required to make sensory cells of the inner ear.
Genetic Reprogramming Regenerates Lost Hair Cells in the Mature Mouse Inner Ear
Our results suggest that mature cochlear supporting cells can be reprogrammed into sensory hair cells, providing a possible target for hair cell regeneration in mammals.
The Hearing Restoration Project Adds a New Working Group
Given the need for platforms that provide efficient, reproducible, and reliable outcome measurements, the HRP has created a new, fourth working group this year: Screening.
Key Findings and Next Steps
Where do we want our hair cell regeneration research to be in three years’ time, and what will it take to get us there?