MIT's new drug can cure hearing loss. This is what Frequency Therapeutics, a spinout biotechnology firm from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology said.
A man listens to an iPod MP3 player through earphones August 17, 2005 in Sydney, Australia. Research conducted by the National Acoustic Laboratories, to be released by the Australian Federal Government today, has found that up to a 25% of people who use iPods or other portable music devices will suffer from hearing problems.
"Hearing is such an important sense; it connects people to their community and cultivates a sense of identity," said Jeff Karp, the founder of the health tech company.
Karp added, via MIT News, that restoring hearing is important since the degrading hearing abilities of people can greatly affect society.
MIT's New Drug Cures Hearing Loss?
According to IFL Science's latest report, the latest health innovation of the Frequency Therapeutics is not a common solution for hearing loss.
A woman looks on the living replica of Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh's famously severed ear which is displayed at Culture and media museum ZKM, in Karlsruhe, southwestern Germany, on June 4, 2014. The ear is part of the exhibition "Sugababe" by Diemut Strebe, an artist specialised in artworks using biological material.
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Instead of creating a new hearing aid or any kind of hearing implant, the medical firm decided to focus on a new regenerative medicine.
Involved experts said that the new drug could stimulate progenitor cells, a descendent of stem cells.
They are commonly found in the inner ear. After that, the inner part of the patient's ear is expected to be more hirsute or hairy. The curing method of the new regenerative pill might confuse some individuals.
But, MIT experts stated that hair cells are actually important factors for a human's hearing ability. The so-called cochlea, the part that produces these hair cells, serves as a natural amplifier.
If there's more hair in the inner part of the ear, it just shows that cochlea is functioning properly.
Why Should Hearing Loss Be Treated?
For some, hearing loss is not a big health issue. They can just turn the volume of their TVs when they can't hear their favorite shows.
On the other hand, they can also move closer to the individual they are talking to. But, there are individuals who suffer greatly from hearing loss.
Better Health reported that hearing loss could affect your lifestyle. For example, many applicants are not accepted for their preferred jobs because of miscommunication during the interview.
Meanwhile, other people will start to withdraw socially just to avoid impaired communication with other individuals.
Recently, MIT engineers created new plants that can create light.
On the other hand, MIT launches Roboat, a new self-sailing water taxi.
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Written by: Griffin Davis
