Molecular Mechanisms of Sensorineural Hearing Loss and Development of Inner Ear Therapeutics

The sense of hearing is vulnerable to environmental challenges, such as exposure to

noise. More than 1.5 billion people experience some decline in hearing ability during their

lifetime, of whom at least 430 million will be affected by disabling hearing loss. If not

identified and addressed in a timely way, hearing loss can severely reduce the quality of

life at various stages. Some causes of hearing loss can be prevented, for example from

occupational or leisure noise. The World Health Organization estimates that more than 1

billion young people put themselves at risk of permanent hearing loss by listening to loud

music over long periods of time. Mitigating such risks through public health action is

essential to reduce the impact of hearing loss in the community. The etiology of

sensorineural hearing loss is complex and multifactorial, arising from congenital and

acquired causes. This book highlights the diverse range of approaches to sensorineural

hearing loss, from designing new animal models of age-related hearing loss, to the use of

microRNAs as biomarkers of cochlear injury and drug repurposing for the therapy of agerelated

and noise-induced hearing loss. Further investigation into the underlying

molecular mechanisms of sensorineural hearing loss and the integration of the novel

drug, cell, and gene therapy strategies into controlled clinical studies will permit

significant advances in a field where there are currently many unmet needs.