Auricyte’s goal is to cure hearing loss by growing stem cells into functioning hearing cells, according to an IU press release.
Auricyte was among five companies being presented with the title of “Best in Show” at the recent Innovation Showcase 2015.
In addition to the title of “Best in Show,” the new company was voted winner of the Seed Stage Award.
“We are thrilled that the showcase judges selected Auricyte for the Seed Stage Award out of such a diverse and exciting group of companies,” Koehler said in the release.
Auricyte is part of the IU Research and Technology’s Corp’s “Spin Up” program. This program allows partners to strengthen IU’s “intellectual resources and expertise,” help Indiana’s economic growth flourish and contribute to the well-being of those who live in Indiana, according to the release.
The Center for Hearing and Communication estimate there are 48 million Americans with substantial hearing loss.
The research team has been able to transform mouse embryonic stem cells into structures of the inner ear.
IU School of Medicine Newsroom conducted an interview with Dr. Hashino, one of the researchers who developed Auricyte LLC.
“We were surprised to see that once stem cells are guided to become inner-ear precursors, and placed in 3-D culture, these cells behave as if they knew not only how to become different cell types in the inner ear, but also how to self-organize into a pattern remarkably similar to the native inner ear,” Hashino said in the release.
Currently, the scientists are investigating whether or not their model “could be used to derive disease relevant tissues and cells, such as auditory neurons that degenerate with hearing loss,” according to the release.
The “ear-in-a-dish” technology, also known as the 3D Ear platform, is expected to take about three years to complete.
Caitlin Blackford