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[HolyBaikal]

One of the nice things about keeping up with futurology, is that I always get to hear about positive news that makes me feel better. Instead of all of the bad news of what is happening in the world. It makes your day bright when good things happen. I thought I might start sharing some with NeoGAF.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-...e-drives-hearing-loss-drug-search-health.html

Novartis AG (NOVN) is developing a gene therapy that may reverse hearing loss by stimulating the regrowth of microscopic hair cells in the inner ear, allowing people to hear. The hairs are destroyed by prolonged exposure to loud noise, and don’t take root again naturally. Novartis treated the first patient in October after successful tests on rats.

U.S. Testing

Novartis plans to test its treatment on 45 patients in the U.S., with results expected by 2017, according to a description of the trial on clinicaltrials.gov, the National Institutes of Health’s database of studies. It’s too early to say when the treatment might be approved, Fishman said.

Gene Treatments

The therapy uses a disabled cold-causing virus that enters so-called supporting cells in the inner ear, where it delivers its payload -- a gene called atonal-1 that tells the cells to grow into hair cells.

Scientists have been working for decades on using genes to treat maladies including cancer, HIV and blindness, with mixed results. A trial more than a decade ago of an experimental gene therapy cured 17 infants with a rare immune disorder, but caused leukemia in five patients, and killed one. Trial results from a second study, published last year, have shown no signs of leukemia.

Glybera, a treatment developed by Amsterdam-based UniQure B.V. (QURE) for a rare disorder that causes inflammation of the pancreas, became the first gene therapy product approved in Europe, in 2012.

To me, this is just wonderful news, and just like all other things in medicine, I wish them the best. And anyone who wants to cure hearing loss. Losing hearing is a very sad thing. There are so many beautiful sounds to listen to in the world. And it's so sad that some many people can't enjoy them.

We have help for many people who have had to suffer with hearing loss and blindness and all sorts of things. But it looks like many more people in the near future may be able to get much better help. And we can reverse tinnitus and people's hearing can be amazing again.

They tried it on rats, and it worked. And now they're trying it on humans. I hope it works out. This would be really great for so many people.

 

[Ahasverus]

Gene therapy is medicine future. All advance is welcome, and this is an evil that afects many people. Bring it on, 21st century

 

[Sho_Nuff82]

I have a few friends working in the NIBR (honestly, I've applied there no less than 4 times in the past 4 years), the group is doing great work.

My last paper from my grad school group was a gene therapy project, the technology is really exciting, quite effective, and advancing at an incredible pace.