Deafness is the most common sensory disability worldwide. One in every 200 children is born with a hearing disorder, and one in every 1,000 is born deaf. In about half these cases, deafness is caused by a mutation. There are currently about 100 different genes related to hereditary deafness.

Scientists are capable of preventing the gradual deterioration of hearing in mice that had a mutation for deafness. They believe that this novel therapy could lead on to a breakthrough in treating children born with various mutations that eventually cause deafness.

The study was led by Professor Karen Avraham of the Department of Human genetics and Biochemistry at TAU's Sackler Faculty of drugs and Sagol School of Neuroscience.

Shahar Taiber, one of Professor Avraham's students on the combined MD-PhD track stated that they implemented an innovative gene therapy technology. They created a harmless synthetic virus and used it to deliver genetic material a traditional version of the gene that's defective in both the mouse model and therefore the affected human families.