(ETH) – In a world’s first, scientists have reportedly used the gene-editing technique CRISPR to try to edit a gene while the DNA is still inside a person’s body. This report from NPR, is revealing that the groundbreaking procedure involved injecting the microscopic gene-editing tool into the eye of the patient blinded by a rare genetic disorder, in hopes of enabling the volunteer to see.
The scientists are hoping to know within weeks whether this approach is working and if so, to know within two or three months how much vision will be restored to the patient. “We’re really excited about this,” Dr. Eric Pierce, a professor of ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School, who is leading a study that the procedure launched, tells NPR.
“We’re helping open, potentially, an era of gene-editing for therapeutic use that could have impact in many aspects of medicine,” Pierce says. CRISPR gene-editing technique has been revolutionizing scientific research by making it much easier to rewrite the genetic code and raising high hopes of curing many diseases.
