Award
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders 1R21DC022934-01
Auditory circuit organization following gene therapy for congenital deafness
Recipient
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
Award Amount
$582,552.00
Ceiling
$582,552.00
Awarded
July 29, 2025
Identifier
1R21DC022934-01
Research project funded to study otoferlin's role in auditory development and optimize gene therapy timing and plasticity enhancement for congenital deafness treatment.
Description
This project seeks to understand the critical role of otoferlin in auditory circuit development and how gene therapy can be optimized to restore hearing in patients with congenital deafness caused by otoferlin variants. The project will investigate how spontaneous neural activity patterns are disrupted in Otof KO mice and explore the timing of otoferlin gene therapy at different developmental stages. It will also assess whether visual deprivation can enhance plasticity following gene therapy to improve auditory rehabilitation outcomes.