Breakthrough Discovery in Hearing Loss Treatment

The infamous little blue pill that keeps men awake can improve another type of hardship – namely hearing loss. A new study reports that Viagra has the potential to reverse an often permanent form of hereditary hearing loss.

The Prevalence of Hearing Loss

About 3 out of 2,000 people are born with a hearing impairment. The good news is that taking Viagra beyond the bedroom could have a surprising benefit. Research published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation pointed to a mutation in a gene called CPD that leads to a form of deafness known as sensorineural hearing loss.

The Cause of Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Scientists at the University of Chicago, the University of Miami, and several institutions in Turkey have found that the disease can be controlled with two treatments. One is a common dietary supplement, the other is a popular erectile dysfunction medication. Sensorineural hearing loss occurs when the CPD gene pathway is disrupted, leading to oxidative stress and cell death in the brain’s ear hair cells responsible for hearing and balance.

The Role of Sildenafil in Treating Hearing Loss

One treatment was sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra and other ED drugs. In healthy hearing, the CPD gene instructs an enzyme to maintain levels of the amino acid arginine, which produces nitric oxide and helps send signals throughout the nervous system. When the ear loses the function of the CPD gene, the ability to detect sound waves is also lost. Sildenafil may improve audio recognition in people with a certain type of congenital hearing loss.

Treatment and Results

The study authors addressed this loss in two ways, using fruit flies with CPD mutations: sildenafil to stimulate nitric oxide production and a separate arginine preparation. Both treatments improved the flies’ hearing loss. The researchers found that CPD maintains arginine levels in hair cells to enable a rapid signaling cascade through the generation of nitric oxide.

A Promising Therapeutic Route

Sensorineural hearing loss can be treated with hearing aids and cochlear implants, but early study results could lead to a cure. The study’s findings are a good example of efforts to repurpose FDA-approved drugs to treat rare diseases. The researchers have found a promising therapeutic route for patients with sensorineural hearing loss, and it is exciting because they have discovered a new gene mutation that is associated with deafness and, more importantly, have a therapeutic target that can actually alleviate this condition.