Department of Neuroscience, Reproductive Sciences and Dentistry (Audiology and Vestibology Service), University of Naples Federico II, 80138 Napoli, Italy.
Theoreo srl, Spin off Company of the University of Salerno, Via Degli Ulivi 3, 84090 Montecorvino Pugliano, Italy.
Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Oct 14;24(20):15188. doi: 10.3390/ijms242015188.
With more than 466 million people affected, hearing loss represents the most common sensory pathology worldwide. Despite its widespread occurrence, much remains to be explored, particularly concerning the intricate pathogenic mechanisms underlying its diverse phenotypes. In this context, metabolomics emerges as a promising approach. Indeed, lying downstream from molecular biology's central dogma, the metabolome reflects both genetic traits and environmental influences. Furthermore, its dynamic nature facilitates well-defined changes during disease states, making metabolomic analysis a unique lens into the mechanisms underpinning various hearing impairment forms. Hence, these investigations may pave the way for improved diagnostic strategies, personalized interventions and targeted treatments, ultimately enhancing the clinical management of affected individuals. In this comprehensive review, we discuss findings from 20 original articles, including human and animal studies. Existing literature highlights specific metabolic changes associated with hearing loss and ototoxicity of certain compounds. Nevertheless, numerous critical issues have emerged from the study of the current state of the art, with the lack of standardization of methods, significant heterogeneity in the studies and often small sample sizes being the main limiting factors for the reliability of these findings. Therefore, these results should serve as a stepping stone for future research aimed at addressing the aforementioned challenges.
受影响的人数超过 4.66 亿，听力损失是全球最常见的感觉病理。尽管它的发生率很高，但仍有许多问题需要探讨，特别是关于其多种表型背后复杂的发病机制。在这种情况下，代谢组学应运而生。事实上，代谢组位于分子生物学中心法则的下游，反映了遗传特征和环境影响。此外，其动态性质使得在疾病状态下能够明确定义变化，使代谢组分析成为理解各种听力损伤形式机制的独特视角。因此，这些研究可能为改进诊断策略、个性化干预和靶向治疗铺平道路，最终改善受影响个体的临床管理。在这篇全面的综述中，我们讨论了 20 篇原始文章的发现，包括人类和动物研究。现有文献强调了与听力损失和某些化合物耳毒性相关的特定代谢变化。然而，从当前研究的现状来看，出现了许多关键问题，方法缺乏标准化、研究中存在显著异质性，以及样本量通常较小，这些都是这些发现可靠性的主要限制因素。因此，这些结果应作为未来研究的垫脚石，旨在解决上述挑战。
