Hearing Loss Study Brings Hope

Sept. 10, 2010 - PRLog -- Millions of studies are done everyday to help find a cure about a variety of human ailments. New Generation Miami Hearing Center found a study about restoring hearing health in adults. Scientists at the University of Washington found that the Notch Signal (a cell-to-cell signaling pathway) is the one responsible in choosing where the ear’s sensory organs will be located in embryonic mice. The scientists are able to activate this signal across the embryonic tissue that becomes the inner ear.

The purpose is to determine means to repair the inner ear sensory hair cells in adults, which when damaged can result in people to losing their hearing. First, scientists learned how hair cells form. After, they trigger the Notch Signal to promote the development of new sensory patches all over the inner ear. Once this happens, new hair cells regenerated.  

Olivia Bermingham-McDonogh, part of the University of Washington’s Study states, “As the population ages, there's a great interest in discovering how to regenerate the inner ear sensory cells that we need for our hearing and balance”. She affirms "Both of these falter as we get older -- we get hard of hearing and unsteady on our feet -- due to accumulated destruction of the sensory cells in the inner ear"

Scientists are trying to manipulate this pathway in the inner ear of a human adult. This will hopefully help with hair cell regeneration in the hearing and balance organs.  It will result in the restoration of hearing damage and  hearing loss which is very good news.

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Specializing in digital hearing aids for the Miami, FL area, New Generation Hearing Centers has created a new paradigm in patient care. A place patients get the information they need to make a good decision about their hearing loss and hearing aids