Usher syndrome type IF is a devastating hereditary disease characterized by the complete absence of hearing and balance at birth and a slowly progressing blindness. It is caused by mutations in the PCDH15 protein, which functions in both the inner ear's sound sensing hair cells and the retina's light-sensing photoreceptors.
Gene Therapy for GJB2-Related Deafness
Mutations of the GJB2 gene cause DFNBl, which is by far the most common form of hereditary deafness. Unlike most deafness genes, GJB2 functions within the cochlea's nearby epithelial cells and fibrocytes rather than the hair cells.
The Molecular Mechanism of Auditory Transduction
The most fundamental event in hearing is the conversion of sound into an electrical signal by opening ion channels in inner ear hair cells. Among the known components of this mechanotransduction complex are proteins that respond to sound by causing the cilia atop each hair cell to vibrate.