Dr. Hertzano is an otolaryngologist surgeon-scientist tenured Professor at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Born in Israel, Dr. Hertzano received her M.D. and Ph.D degrees from the Sackler School of Medicine at Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel. Her doctoral thesis, which was performed both at Tel Aviv University and at the National Institutes of Deafness and Communications Disorders (NIDCD/NIH) focused on elucidating the signaling pathway downstream of the deafness causing gene POU4F3 in the mouse inner ear. She then performed her residency training in Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, where she also established her research team.
Dr. Hertzano’s clinical practice focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the ear, with a specific emphasis on hearing restoration. As such, she sees and treats patients of all ages that suffer from hereditary and non-hereditary auditory and vestibular dysfunction. The goal of Dr. Hertzano’s research program is to make significant contributions towards the treatment of congenital and acquired auditory and vestibular dysfunction. Towards hearing restoration, she works to unravel the regulatory signaling cascades that lead to the proper development of the ear and specifically the hair cells. A second main interest is in developing therapeutics to prevent age and noise induced hearing loss. To facilitate dissemination, sharing and analysis of multi-omic data Dr. Hertzano developed the gEAR portal – gene Expression Analysis Resource (umgear.org). Finally, Dr. Hertzano has a strong interest in mentorship. Her diverse team consists of undergraduates, medical students, residents, audiologists, graduate students, and post docs.
Dr. Hertzano is the recipient of several awards including the Burt Evans Young Investigator Award, from the National Organization of Hearing Research; Brian E. Emery, M.D., Outstanding Teaching Award, UMSOM; Distinction Award in Alternative/Basic Science for the Triological Society Thesis; and the 2021 UMB Researcher of the Year Award. Dr. Hertzano is chair of the American Neurotology Society research committee; core faculty of the University of Maryland College Park Center for Comparative and Evolutionary Biology of Hearing T32 grant; a member of the Hearing Restoration Program of the Hearing Health Foundation, and an organizing committee member of the HEAR@JAX workshop of the Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine. In her free time, Dr. Hertzano enjoys running, cycling, and playing Rummikub.