Wow does that sound cool! So, Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered this single “master” gene that programs ear hair cells to be either inner or outer ones. This is better than creating just an artificial ear hair cell that can’t distinguish inner from outer.
When that master gene, TBX2, is expressed, it can configure the ear hair cells and restore hearing. But if I was born already fairly deaf (granted, it’s gotten worse over the decades), does that mean I didn’t have enough TBX2 in my embryonic stage?
Or can this research actually inject these genes into me now, and they could start triggering the right ear hair cells to start hearing again?