New Clues To Human Deafness Found In Mice

Providing clues to deafness, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a gene that is required for proper development of the mouse inner ear. In humans, this gene, known as FGF20, is located in a portion of the genome that has been associated with inherited deafness in otherwise healthy families. "When we inactivated FGF20 in mice, we saw they were alive and healthy," says senior author David M. Ornitz, MD, PhD, the Alumni Endowed Professor of Developmental Biology. "But then we figured out that they had absolutely no ability to hear...

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