New Method Allows Scientists To Edit Genes From Inside Patient Body

For the first time in history, scientists have tried to use CRISPR, a gene-editing technique, to edit genes when they are still inside the human body.

What they did was to inject the tool to the eye of a person who is blind as a result of a genetic disorder. What they aimed at with this experiment is to allow the patient to see. The scientists expect results to come in the next few weeks. If the method works, within three months, they can determine how much eyesight has been restored.

CRISPR is a revolutionizing method that allows scientists to rewrite genetic codes. Giving us hope to cure a wide range of diseases.

Before the endeavor to edit genes inside the patient body, tests are limited to using CRISPR to treat a small number of patients with cancers and some blood disorders. However, it is too soon to conclude whether the method works.

In the past cases, the targeted genes are removed from the patient’s body and then CRISPR is used to edit them. After that, the edited genes will be put back into the body to fight back cancer cells or produce the protein that the patient body cannot generate due to the disorders.

In this revolutionary experiment, doctors inject microscopic droplets with an engineered virus that carries instructions for the body to produce the CRISPR gene-editing machinery.

This genetic disorder destroys light-sensitive cells in human's retina so those who suffer from it can only tell movements or notice the difference between night and day. If the procedure works, it can be repeated with the other eye.

Scientists hope that they can perfect the method to treat the disorders that it is impossible to remove cells from patient bodies. Such conditions include some brain disorders and muscle diseases.

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