Gene therapy for inner ear disease: the next targets

The recent successful otoferlin gene therapy trials have refocused the fields attention on the potential of gene therapy to cure hearing loss. With over 100 known monogenetic causes of hearing loss, the key question is which will be the next set of disorders that are treatable. The current review addresses potentially targetable hearing disorders that can be addressed with current gene therapy technologies.

For gene replacement therapy, we need to consider disorders that have residual targetable cells present in postnatal to adult ages. If a target tissue (i.e. hair cells) degenerates during development, it can no longer be rescued by gene therapy. Disorders such as DFNB8 and certain mutations in DFNB1 could benefit from a gene therapy approach. Other important considerations are the size of the gene being replaced, the availability of appropriate vectors, and the overall incidence of the disease.

Genetic hearing losses that occur in the postnatal period are currently optimal targets and conversely hearing losses that occur in utero resulting in severe to profound congenital losses for now will not be treatable with gene therapy. Gene replacement therapy for recessive disorders will precede development of gene editing strategies for dominant disorders.