Stem Cells May Provide Cure For Hearing Loss

From NewScientist:

Human ear cells vital for hearing have for the first time been created in the lab, and could eventually yield new treatments for hearing loss.

Such cells have been created before from mice, but the new cells will reveal more about how human hearing works.

"We believe these are the first from humans," says Marcelo Rivolta of the University of Sheffield, UK and head of the team presenting its findings on Monday in Oxford at a conference on stem cells.

"Stem cell therapy for hearing loss is still some years away, but this research is incredibly promising and opens up exciting possibilities," says Ralph Holme, director of biomedical research at the UK Royal National Institute for Deaf People, which co-funded the research with Deafness Research UK.

The team grew the cells from cochlear stem cells they'd isolated from fetuses following abortions, with the full consent of the women involved.