The development of gene therapy, a method of correcting defective genes that cause disease, has been a long and difficult road for scientific researchers. “The Second Coming of Gene Therapy” in Discover Magazine provides an in-depth look at the history of gene and cell therapy and its renewed promise for the treatment of a wide range of diseases. From the 1980’s through the 1990’s, the scientific community’s hope for gene therapy was met with eminent disappointment. However, advances in recent years have revitalized the field, which now shows tremendous potential for developing treatments for serious diseases.
Recently, gene and cell therapy reached a milestone with the first study to show benefit to patients with a neurodegenerative condition. The results of the double-blind clinical trial conducted by the Department of Neurological Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York were reported in The Lancet Neurology. According to Nature, the experimental gene-therapy treatment for Parkinson’s disease, which symptoms include tremors, slowness, and cognitive dysfunction, eased the movement problems of a small number of patients and raised no major safety concerns. According to MSNBC, the study represents a positive step for gene and cell therapy, the affect was small and will need to be confirmed by a larger trial.
VIRxSYS is encouraged by the success of our peers as we work diligently to develop gene and cell therapies for serious diseases, such as HIV and cardiovascular diseases.