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Active Research
Prevention of Cisplatin Ototoxicity with the Antioxidant a-Lipoic Acid
Principal Investigators: Debra Wilmington, Ph.D.
Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of lipoic acid therapy to prevent or reduce ototoxic-induced changes in hearing sensitivity in patients receiving Cisplatin (CDDP) chemotherapy in a double blind placebo-controlled study by assessment of behavioral conventional and high-frequency pure-tone thresholds.
Background: Antioxidant therapy has been successful in a number of animal models as a protective pharmacological intervention for ototoxic-induced hearing loss. Specifically, lipoic acid has been shown to be a superior antioxidant as it scavenges free radicals, regenerates other antioxidants such as vitamin C and E, and elevates tissue concentrations of glutathione, and inhibits the activation of signaling factors, which initiate the inflammatory response to oxidative stress. To assess the ability of lipoic acid therapy to prevent or reduce the incidence and severity of hearing loss due to treatment with CDDP, behavioral conventional and high-frequency audiometry and their correlation with laboratory markers of oxidative stress will be used to determine the ability of alpha-lipoic acid therapy concurrent with administration of CDDP to minimize the incidence, delay the onset, and reduce the magnitude of ototoxic hearing loss.
Findings: The proposed translational study will link animal studies of lipoic acid to the establishment of clinical protocols in patients receiving ototoxic medications.
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