| 摘要 |
In one aspect, the present invention provides methods for stimulating the regeneration of inner ear cells comprising introducing a nucleic acid molecule that encodes an inner ear cell transcription factor, capable of stimulating the regeneration of an inner ear cell, into at least one inner ear cell under conditions that enable expression of the transcription factor in the inner ear cell. Any type of inner ear cell can be treated in accordance with the present invention, but the presently preferred cells treated in accordance with the present invention are inner ear supporting cells. The presently preferred gene delivery method is lipofection. In another aspect, the present invention provides methods for ameliorating the symptoms of an inner ear disease comprising introducing a nucleic acid molecule that encodes an inner ear cell transcription factor, capable of stimulating the regeneration of an inner ear cell, into a portion of the inner ear under conditions that enable the uptake of the nucleic acid molecule by inner ear cells and expression of the transcription factor within the inner ear cells. In yet another aspect, the present invention provides genetically-transformed, regenerated inner ear cells, preferably supporting cells or sensory hair cells, including a transgene encoding an inner ear cell transcription factor.
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