Unraveling the genetic etiology of sensory disorders: The role of calcium signaling genes at the auditory inner hair cell ribbon synapse and identification of new genes.

Impairment in auditory and/or visual senses has a great impact on a child's ability to learn by affecting their access to the physical, social, and instructional environment. Congenital sensory disorders are often caused by a mutation in a single gene, and can be designated as monogenic disorders. The identification of these genes is one of the main goals of this projectand is of significant importance in understanding normal pathological and physiological processes. Previous gene identifications have created a revolution in biology, and the identity of many major molecular players the process of sense were revealed. Classical biochemical and biological methods trying to identify these molecules had yielded limited success before.The genetic identifications lead to major breakthroughs in the understanding of the physiology, through functional studies, animal models, identification of family members and interacting proteins.

Keywords:CONGENITAL ABNORMALITIES, GENETIC MUTATIONS

Disciplines:Genetics, Systems biology, Molecular and cell biology

Project type:Collaboration project