Gene that causes deafness in children discovered

A gene that causes children to be born deaf has been discovered which scientists say could help in developing medicines to treat the condition in future. This knowledge will help improve treatments for patients, genetic counselling, molecular diagnosis and the development of advanced therapeutic strategies.” One child in 750 is born with severe hearing loss or profound deafness and this study means parents with the hereditary condition would be able to predict more accurately the chances of passing it on to their children, the scientists said. Dr. Sohaila Rastan, at British charity Royal National Institute for the Deaf that funded the research, said: “Knowledge of genes causing deafness tells us more about how our hearing works. “This research will help develop medicines that are desperately needed to prevent deafness and restore hearing.” There are hopes that gene therapy will one day be able to correct genetic defects linked to this type of deafness.