The Hearing Restoration Project’s collaborative team science model and commitment to data sharing continue to drive the group forward, enabling it to meet milestones and launch exciting new experiments and analyses. The 2025 project year that starts in October 2024 marks the beginning of a new three-year plan to guide the consortium members’ work in line with the HRP’s Strategic Plan.
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. The tools this group will develop are essential to working more effectively and identifying when fully functional hair cells are achieved.
The work of the original three working groups continues. The Cross-Species Epigenetics working group compares gene expression and epigenetics across species to identify and describe the molecular mechanisms that prevent hair cell regeneration. The Integrative Analysis working group conducts a meta-analysis of data collected from various species over the years and will curate the data for access via the gEAR, the data-sharing and visualization tool developed with HRP funding. The Reprogramming and Gene Delivery working group focuses on finding ways to stimulate hair cell regeneration by targeting supporting cells.
We are also pleased to welcome a new member to the consortium, Ksenia Gnedeva, Ph.D., of the University of Southern California. She joins the Cross-Species Epigenetics and Screening groups.
Cross-Species Epigenetics Group
Tatjana Piotrowski, Ph.D. (chair), Stowers Institute for Medical Research
Alain Dabdoub, Ph.D., Sunnybrook Research Institute
Ksenia Gnedeva, Ph.D., University of Southern California
Andy Groves, Ph.D., Baylor College of Medicine
Stefan Heller, Ph.D., Stanford University
Litao Tao, Ph.D., Creighton University
Integrative Analysis Group
Seth Ament, Ph.D. (co-chair), University of Maryland
Ronna Hertzano, M.D., Ph.D. (co-chair), National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
Albert Edge, Ph.D., Mass Eye and Ear
Stefan Heller, Ph.D., Stanford University
David Raible, Ph.D., University of Washington
Jennifer Stone, Ph.D., University of Washington
Mark Warchol, Ph.D., Washington University in St. Louis
Reprogramming and Gene Delivery Group
Andy Groves, Ph.D. (chair), Baylor College of Medicine
John Brigande, Ph.D., Oregon Health & Science University
Yehoash Raphael, Ph.D., University of Michigan
Screening Group
Alain Dabdoub, Ph.D., Sunnybrook Research Institute
Albert Edge, Ph.D., Mass Eye and Ear
Ksenia Gnedeva, Ph.D., University of Southern California
Stefan Heller, Ph.D., Stanford University
For more information and updates, see hhf.org/hrp.
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