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Gene therapy makes non-vision cells light sensitive

This would be a stunning result if repeated in humans

15-Mar-2019

Key points from article :

Hundreds of genetic mutations can cause blindness - so can't attack them all.

Current treatments only attempt to halt or slow further degeneration.

Bipolar and retinal ganglion cells often remain healthy in blind people - but aren't sensitive to light.

New therapy involves injecting inactivated viruses carrying opsin directly into ganglion cells.

Opsin gene is usually only expressed in cone photoreceptor cells - making them sensitive to green-yellow light.

Trials in mice succeeded in making 90 percent of ganglion cells light sensitive.

Treated mice were able to explore three-dimensional objects almost as well as normal mice.

Treatment in humans could potentially restore vision within a couple of months of injection.

Mentioned in this article:

Click on resource name for more details.

Ehud Isacoff

Professor of Neurobiology at UC Berkeley.

John Flannery

Professor in Department of Molecular & Cell Biology at UC Berkeley.

University of California, Berkeley

Public land-grant research university

Topics mentioned on this page:
Gene Therapy