Prestin as a biochemical marker for early detection of acquired sensorineural hearing loss.
Acquired sensorineural hearing loss and tinnitus can come about through various etiologies such as exposure to excessively loud noise or drugs with ototoxic properties. As such, acquired hearing loss is a common source of morbidity which deleteriously affects the ability to communicate. At present our ability to detect acquired hearing loss and tinnitus at its earliest stages is limited and there are no adjuncts to audiometric evaluation. The earliest cellular targets of noise and ototoxins in the cochlea are the outer hair cells (OHC). I hypothesize that serum assays of OHC specific protein, prestin, will allow detection and quantification of OHC damage before audiometric testing can identify presence of hearing loss. At present, there are no data available to evaluate this hypothesis, but initial evaluation can readily be carried out using existing experimental animal models of ototoxicity and noise-induced hearing loss. Early detection of OHC damage is critical to adoption of measures aimed at ameliorating hearing loss and tinnitus, thus reducing permanent deficits and disability.
Department of Surgery, Division of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, UCONN Health, Farmington, CT, United States. Electronic address: parham@uchc.edu.
Kourosh
K
Parham
D027321:Anion Transport Proteins / Q000097:blood*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D018072:Hair Cells, Auditory, Outer / Q000378:metabolism*; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D000076988:Sulfate Transporters; D014012:Tinnitus / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis
D027321:Anion Transport Proteins; D015415:Biomarkers; C498719:SLC26A5 protein, human; D000076988:Sulfate Transporters