Physician’s Brief clinical and research highlights for our colleagues in otolaryngology Ye a r- E n d 2014
Supporting Cells May Hold the Key to Restoring Hearing, Says U-M Study
New research from the U-M Kresge Hearing Research Institute shows that harnessing the power of a category of cells in the ear called supporting cells may lead to new strategies to combat many causes of deafness. A group of cells in the ear must work together to allow an individual to hear. Hair cells have long been known to play a crucial role in carrying sound signals to
the brain. But the key to restoring lost hearing may be the lesserknown supporting cells. The research shows that damage to the supporting cells in the ears of mature mice results in the loss of hair cells and profound deafness. The big surprise of the study was that if supporting cells are lost in a newborn mouse, the ear rapidly regenerates new supporting cells – resulting in complete preservation of hearing. This remarkable regeneration results from cells from an adjacent structure moving in and transforming into full-fledged supporting cells. The study not only shows that deafness can result from loss of supporting cells, but it also reveals a previously unknown ability to regenerate supporting cells present for only a few days after birth in the mice. If scientists can learn more about what transpires inside these cells, they may be able to harness it to develop new ways to
regenerate auditory cells and restore hearing in humans of all ages. Findings from the animal study, conducted by researchers from U-M, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and other colleagues were published online in November by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study’s senior author is U-M Kresge Hearing Research Institute director Gabriel Corfas, Ph.D. As Corfas explains, “We had known that losing hair cells results in deafness, and there has been an effort to find a way to regenerate these specialized cells. One idea has been to induce supporting cells to become hair cells. Now we discover that losing supporting cells kills hair cells as well.” “Now we’ve found that there’s an intrinsic regenerative potential in the very early days of life that we could harness as we work to cure Continued on page 2
Gabriel Corfas, Ph.D. Named Director of the Kresge Hearing Research Institute
Gabriel Corfas, M.D.
On July 1, 2014, Gabriel Corfas, Ph.D. began his tenure as director of the Kresge Hearing Research Institute, becoming only the fourth leader since the institute opened in 1963. Formerly professor of Neurology and Otolaryngology at Harvard Medical School and director of basic research in otolaryngology at Children’s Hospital in Boston, Dr. Corfas joined U-M as both a professor in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery and director of KHRI. A native of Argentina and a graduate of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, he trained at the Washington University School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School before joining the Harvard faculty in 1992. His research focuses on the molecular mechanisms involved in the development, function and maintenance of the nervous system, and the development of new therapies based on those mechanisms to treat nervous system disorders.
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deafness,” says Corfas. “This is relevant to many forms of inherited and congenital deafness, and hearing loss due to age and noise exposure. If we can identify the molecules that are responsible for this regeneration, we may be able to turn back the clock inside these ears and regenerate lost cells.” Hair cell loss can be a consequence of supporting cell dysfunction or loss, suggesting that in many cases deafness could be primarily a supporting cell disease. Corfas and his colleagues continue to study the phenomenon, and hope to find drugs that can trigger the same regenerative powers that they saw in the newborn mice. “Understanding the mechanisms that underlie these processes should help in the development of regenerative medicine strategies to treat deafness and vestibular disorders,” he says. Making sure that the inner ear has enough supporting cells, which can transform into hair cells, will be a critical upstream step of any regenerative medicine approaches.
To learn more about the exciting developments taking place at the U-M Kresge Hearing Research Institute, visit www.khri.med. umich.edu.
Carol Bradford Elected to Institute of Medicine Carol R. Bradford, M.D. was elected in October 2014 to the prestigious Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (IOM), one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine. Individuals are elected to the IOM in recognition of their major contributions to the advancement of the medical sciences, health care and public health. Dr. Bradford, chair of the Department of OtolaryngologyHead and Neck Surgery at the Medical School and the Charles J. Krause, M.D., Collegiate Professor of Otolaryngology, is an otolaryngologist and an internationally recognized leader in the treatment of head and neck cancer. She specializes in head and neck cancer surgery and reconstruction, as well as cutaneous oncology and sentinel lymph node biopsy. Her research focuses on identifying and evaluating biomarkers that can predict outcomes in head and neck cancer patients, and developing therapies to combat certain types of head and neck cancer that are resistant to traditional forms of treatment. Bradford has published more than 200 peer-reviewed articles.
U-M Hosts ORL Essentials Boot Camp
Carol R. Bradford, M.D.
During her 16-year tenure as co-director of the Head and Neck Oncology Program at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center, she has helped to advance it from a small program with a few members to one with 30 members from 10 departments and five schools. She continues to play an active role within the program. Bradford is one of six University of Michigan faculty elected to the IOM this year. Her fellow honorees include Gonçalo Abecasis, D.Phil.; Eva Feldman, M.D.; A. Mark Fendrick, M.D.; Susan Murphy, Sc.D., OTR; and Kathleen Potempa, Ph.D., R.N. With their election, the University of Michigan now has 59 past and present members of the IOM.
For the third consecutive year, the U-M Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery sponsored an ORL (otorhinolaryngology) Essentials Boot Camp in July 2014 on the Ann Arbor campus. U-M is one of only a handful of institutions to offer the simulation course; U-M instructors also travel to serve as faculty instructions at other boot camps. The course is open to first and second year otolaryngology residents from around the country. Participants benefit from a 1:3 faculty-to-student ratio. Thirty-four participants learned airway management from intubation to tracheostomy, drainage of peritonsillar abscess, myringotomy with tube insertion, adenoidectomy and basic sinus surgery skills. Through hands-on experience using high technology mannequins, they assessed their on-call readiness and management of common ORL emergency scenarios. Throughout the one-day boot camp, emphasis is placed on experience and practice rather
than lectures and formal didactics, leaving participants with increased comfort and confidence as they embark on their early careers. The 2014 curriculum included: n
Direct Laryngoscopy
n Bronchoscopy n
Foreign Body Removal
n Cricothyrotomy n
Adult Tracheostomy n Pediatric Tracheostomy n Myringotomy Tubes n PTA Drainage n Complex Scenarios The 2015 course is scheduled for July 11, 2015.
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University of Michigan Health System Department of Otolaryngology Carol R. Bradford, M.D., Chair Executive Officers of the University of Michigan Health System
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