NF-κB is Required for Survival of Immature Auditory Hair Cells
In Vitro  368 Downloads 200 Citations 9 Comments   Damage to
auditory hair cells in the inner ear as a consequence of aging,
disease, acoustic trauma, or exposure to ototoxins underlies
most cases of hearing impairment. Because the mammalian ear
cannot replace damaged hair cells, loss of hearing is
irreversible and progressive throughout life. One of the current
goals of inner ear biology is to develop therapeutic strategies
to prevent hair cell degeneration. Although important progress
has been made in discovering factors that mediate hair cell
death, very little is known about the molecular pathway(s) that
signal survival. Here we considered the role of NF-κB, a
ubiquitous transcription factor that plays a major role in the
regulation of many apoptosis- and stress-related genes, in
mediating hair cell survival. NF-κB was detected in a
constitutively active form in the organ of Corti of 5-day-old
rats. Selective inhibition of NF-κB through use of