Gel Formulation Delivering Probucol Into the Inner Ear for Treating Hearing Loss

Gel formula for treating hearing loss |...

A new formula of an existing pharmaceutical is being developed to counter hearing loss, for which there is no suitable medication. Hearing loss is a large and growing problem. The effects are linked to drastically reduced quality of life and even mental health and neurodegenerative disorders. The current approaches to managing hearing loss are hearing aids, cochlear implants or surgery, however, due to cost and suitability, they do not meet the needs of all patients.

The Curtin team, working with a leading surgeon, have now developed a formulation to deliver a known drug directly into the inner ear, by combining it with permeation enhancers in a gel. This could help many people who have suffered hearing loss as a result of ageing, exposure to noise or as a side effect of common treatments for infection and cancer.

Team: Dr Armin Mooranian, Dr Hani Al-Salami, Dr Daniel Brown (School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences) and Dr Jafri Kuthubutheen.

 

What drug is this referring to? Why don't they share any details?

 

There has been a lot of research going on in Western Australia around ears for quite sometime now.

 

All these pieces of news keeps me optimistic about the future of curing tinnitus and restoring hearing. In the next few years it'll be "Tinnitus what? Hyperacusis what?"

I can't wait till we all get that nice fresh start.

 

It's in the video. Probucol. On a side note, I studied at Curtin. It's not the kind of place that you'd expect to produce earth-shattering research. You never know, I guess. Anyway, I take these 'news'-promo videos with a bucket of salt.

 

Uh, apparently the Curtin team hopes to use their method to treat Type II diabetes as well. Same Probucol drug.

I call this team's invention a bust and a shameless attempt to generate some media attention at their academic profiles and university that nobody knows of.

 

Just a note: Curtin is known to be quite an innovative university, and is ranked around top 200 universities worldwide. So it is not by any means a mediocre university today.

Australia has a lot of research going on regarding ear health. This promo is not shameless at all. Many people constantly complain that nothing is done, but indeed there is a lot moving. As we know, ear is complex, and this type of research takes time...

 

On what basis do you call it a bust, out of interest? This university is in the top 1% of all universities in the world. It seems sort of like it has multiple uses much like how The progenitor cell application is being investigated in the same manner by Frequency Therapeutics.

In fact it has because a different group of researchers from Curtain have also obtained a grant for Alzheimer’s.

Curtin project awarded funding to test new treatment for Alzheimer’s disease

 

It's a small university and concentrates more on the practical side of things. Not to say there aren't some very smart people there. The promo/news video is just part of the landscape for universities these days. Academics want to hold onto their tenure. Media wants a story. No-one lies, they just don't stress how (not very) far they are along with their research.

Btw, a couple of guys from this small city were awarded a Nobel prize for research that revealed the role that h. pylori bacteria plays in gut disorders. So, it's not impossible. And if they run a clinical trial, I'm right here!