RNID: For deaf and hard of hearing people.

Otonomy logo

This spotlight is on an exciting new company Otonomy Inc., which is focused on the development of treatments for middle- and inner-ear disorders.

Otonomy Inc. is a San Diego-based start-up, founded by Jay Lichter (Avalon Ventures, VC) and Dr. Jeffrey Harris (UCSD). It has recently announced its prestigious scientific board of physicians and research scientists specialising in diseases and disorders of the ear.

The board includes:

  • Rick Friedman, M.D., Ph.D.; (Company founder, Chief of Hereditary Ear Disorders in the House Ear Institute’s Department of Cell and Molecular Biology)
  • Jeffrey Harris, M.D., Ph.D. (Company founder, Professor and Chief of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery at the University of California, San Diego)
  • Allen Ryan, Ph.D. (Company founder, Professor and Director of Research in Otolaryngology at UCSD, and Director of Otolaryngology Research at the San Diego VA Medical Center)
  • Stephan Heller, Ph.D. (Associate Professor in Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery and Molecular & Cellular Physiology at Stanford University of Medicine)
  • Charles Liberman, Ph.D. (Schuknecht Professor of Otology and Laryngology at Harvard Medical School and the Director of the Eaton-Peabody Laboratory at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary)
  • Christopher Post, M.D., Ph.D. (Director of Allegheny Pediatric ENT Associates at Allegheny General Hospital, Medical Director of the Center for Genomic Sciences, and President and Scientific Director of the Allegheny-Singer Research Institute in Pittsburgh, PA)
  • Alec Salt, Ph.D. (Professor of Otolaryngology at Washington University in Saint Louis)

Otonomy is currently developing an intratympanic injection of a sustained-release gel formulation of dexamethasone (a steroid), to treat Meniere’s disease, sudden sensorineural hearing loss, and noise-induced hearing loss. The off-label use of steroid solutions to treat inner ear disorders is growing in utilisation but typically requires multiple intratympanic injections to achieve sustained exposure to the cochlear fluids. Otonomy’s proprietary formulation has been designed to provide extended duration drug release from a single injection. Clinical trials for this product are anticipated to begin in 2010.

Future development programs will utilize the company’s formulation platform to deliver existing drugs for treating other forms of hearing loss.

Please visit their website: www.otonomy.com (external link)

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