The volatile gene therapy space is getting a boost with Eli Lilly and Co.’s acquisition of Akouos Inc., which only a month before had received the first IND from the U.S. FDA for an adeno-associated virus (AAV)-based hearing loss treatment. Lilly plans to pay about $610 million for the company to get at AK-OTOF, Akouos’ lead candidate for treating hearing loss due to mutations in the otoferlin gene.