In this project, Professor Abigail Tucker and Karishma Panchani at King’s College London explore non-invasive ways to treat damage to the eardrum.
Project start date: October 2025
Project end date: September 2028
About the project
Around three out of every 10 children will experience damage to their eardrum caused by inflammation of the middle ear (called glue ear or otitis media). Most of this damage heals rapidly without any need for intervention, but some does not and can lead to ear pain, tinnitus, ear infections, and hearing loss.
Chronic ear drum damage is currently treated by surgery making less invasive techniques needed in the clinic. In this project, Karishma will investigate how the eardrum heals and the role that stem cells play in that repair, to help avoid the need for invasive surgery.
How it works
The researchers previously found that in mice with damage to the eardrum, dormant cells wake and play a critical role in replacing the damaged cells. It is possible that these dormant cells can also be triggered to improve the repair of chronic eardrum injuries.
Karishma will assess the factors that lead to chronic damage and their impact on the stem cells of the eardrum. She will use genetically engineered mice and state-of-the art techniques to follow the role of stem cells in eardrum repair.
How will this research benefit people with damage to the eardrum?
This project will help develop ways to treat eardrum damage making use of the eardrum’s ability to repair itself without the need for surgery, improving treatment accessibility and outcomes.
About the researchers
Professor Abigail Tucker is Professor of Development and Evolution at King’s College London.
The three parts of the ear form from different tissues, at different time points, and have independently evolved during mammalian evolution, yet they must all coordinate to create the organ of hearing. If things go wrong hearing is impacted from birth, or even much later in life. This complex development makes the ear a fascinating structure to work on.”
Karishma Panchani started her PhD in Abigail’s lab in October 2025. We are co-funding this studentship with the Masonic Charitable Foundation.
I hope my research will reveal how eardrum stem cells behave during injury and infection and identify ways to stimulate them in chronic cases where healing fails. In the long term, this could lead to new regenerative treatments that restore hearing and reduce the need for surgery.”