The History Of Sytech And Gene Therapy

Gene therapy is a very controversial topic that has been discussed in the last five years and is being heavily studied to help cure cancer. Gene therapy is a technique aimed at treating genetic disorders by introducing the correct form of the defective gene into the patient’s genome (Dunlop et al., 2010).

Although the treatment is costly and only available in clinical trials, gene therapy has treated some of the most known diseases, like Parkinson’s disease. People who are for gene therapy believe that it will change our world by getting rid of sickness. They think of a world without cancer and Parkinson’s disease. However, the people against gene therapy see a world with technology overtaking civilization. In their eyes, they think that gene therapy is wrong because of the side effects and the concept behind it. In addition, when thinking about gene therapy, the opposers conjecture that changing the genetic makeup of someone affected with genetic illness is wrong. I, on the other hand, believe that changing the genetic makeup of someone that is ill and suffering is exceptional because it is to their advantage. All in all, gene therapy is a heavily debated topic, but I believe that gene therapy can change our world in a positive

Some people may wonder what gene therapy is. Gene therapy is the replacing of defective or missing genes with normal genes in order to cure the disorder. In the future, this technique may be used to prevent or treat a disorder by inserting

Fifty years after the idea of gene therapy was first proposed, gene therapy has become a possible treatment for a couple different diseases. Before this treatment was approved, some serious unfavorable effects were found in clinical trials. However, these effects fueled more basic research in order to improve, in efficiency and safety. Gene therapy has been used for patients with blindness, neuromuscular disease, hemophilia, immunodeficiencies, and cancer.

Just in case you are a little shaky on the topic of gene therapy I will briefly explain. Gene therapy is a type of treatment used

Gene therapy has had many successes as well as setbacks. The success of gene therapy outweighs the setbacks Elizabeth would say. The first human to receive gene therapy treatment was a 4 year old girl with severe immune- deficiency disease; the disease was caused by a faulty gene that fails to produce a vital enzyme (Genetics, 23). Gene therapy

Whether gene therapy should be allowed to be used in practice is currently a very controversial topic. In my opinion, I do not think that it should be allowed. Gene therapy is a technique where genetic material is inserted into a patient to replace missing or defective genes. Gene therapy can be further broken down into two categories: somatic and germline. From there, somatic gene therapy can be approached in two ways: in-vivo and ex-vivo. For the process of gene therapy to begin, the proper vector needs to be acquired. Once a vector is chosen, the vector delivers the new gene into the target cell. Then, the target cell becomes infected with the vector. Next, the vector’s genetic material is inserted into the target cell. Then finally, functional

Genetic engineering is the modification of the genes to be able to change the characteristics of the person. “Designer babies” is when the parents choose the genetic information of the child, while in embryo. The genetic engineering will occur hand in hand with in vitro fertilization. For “designer babies” to actually be created, the parents need a donor with the genes the parents want inserted in their child. Whereas, genetic therapy is the changing of the person’s genes after they have been born. Gene therapy occurs by inserting healthy genes into the person’s genetic code to repair that code.

Gene therapy is a relatively new technology that has shown some promising results. Such as the drug called Strimvelis that is used to help children with severe combined immunodeficiency, a disease that leaves infants with little to no protection against viruses, bacteria, fungi, and other potentially harmful things. It appears to be a cure carried out through a genetic pair. Strimvelis was tested on 18 children, starting 15 years ago, all of whom are still alive today. Gene therapy is used to inject genes into a person’s cells and tissues in order to treat a disease, as well as hereditary diseases where an abnormal allele is replaced with a fully functional allele. The carrier, called a vector, is used to transport the normal gene to the target cells. The most common type of vector are viruses that have been genetically altered to carry human DNA. Scientists have been trying to control the way the viruses have evolved encapsulating and delivering their genes to normal cells in a pathogenic way by manipulating the viral genome to remove disease-causing genes and inserting healthy ones. Theoretically, it is possible to transform either the cells of the body (somatic) or the cells of the sperm, ova, and their precursors (germline). All of the gene therapy experiments so far on humans have been directed to somatic cells, because germline experiments have been remaining controversial. Somatic gene therapy is split into two broad categories: ex vivo (cells are modified outside of the body then returned back again) or in vivo (genes are changed in cells while still located inside of the

The possibilities are endless, countries with accessibility to this technology will have a major advantage over those that do not both from an economic and scientific perspective. Economies may boom in countries where societies become “enhanced”. Military application on soldiers could make armed forces significantly more efficient. Germline gene therapy or manipulation can change/enhance future generations of people. Nevertheless, gene therapy has many hurdles to overcome and as with introduction of any revolutionary technology, only time will tell, after all, many predictions about the future of society and technology have fallen flat in some

Gene therapy is a relatively new practice in genetics that aims to correct mutations at a molecular level instead of using drugs or surgical approaches. Different approaches to gene therapy include gene augmentation therapy, gene inhibition therapy, the killing of specific cells, somatic gene therapy, and germ line gene therapy. Through gene augmentation therapy, faulty genes would be taken out of the genome sequence and replaced, effectively ending the effects that the mutated gene had on the body. An example of a gene that would be replaced is the mutated p53 gene. If functioning correctly, the p53 gene should stop the formation of tumors.It works by binding to DNA in the cell and stimulates the production of p21, which when combined with a cell division- stimulating protein, stops cell division. When the p53 is mutated, it fails to stimulate the production of p21 and the cell begins to divide uncontrollably. The gene therapy would replace the faulty p53 gene with a normal p53 gene.

Gene therapy (otherwise known as somatic gene therapy or therapeutic gene therapy) is a process that is used to correct defective genes responsible for development of various diseases. (www.accessexcellence.org/RC/AB/BA/Gene_Therapy_Overview.php) There are two main types of gene therapy; somatic (body) cell gene therapy and germ line gene therapy. As it suggests, somatic gene therapy is correcting the faulty genes of normal body cells. Germ line therapy is altering genes in gametes. Everyone on earth carries a few defective genes. Most of us are unaware of this fact however, unless we are afflicted with a genetic disease. Approximately one in ten people have, or will develop, a disease that is

This is then introduced into the human body commonly by injection where it will target cells nuclei inserting its genetic material which contains the functioning ADA gene meaning that a large number of somatic cells will be able to produce the functioning ADA protein can be synthesised. It is worth noting that while gene therapy has been done successfully on patients with ADA deficiency before, the treatment explained above is not the only method and will not work for every patient. After the recombinant DNA has been amplified the desired amount, it must first be injected into adenoviruses which will be the viral vectors responsible for delivering the functioning gene into the human body. After the DNA has been inserted into the adenoviruses these are placed into a solution which is then

Gene therapy is all about changing genes, often at a nucleic base level, in order to overcome obstacles pertained to medicine for the treatment of disease. It is a relatively new method of therapeutics due to the technological reliance and the intricate level of understanding needed of the human genome, which has only recently been overcome. Few approaches are available today, and many more are currently under investigation as scientists invest in the practicality of therapies whilst considering ongoing ethical debates.

There is only one viable technique in gene therapy to humans – adding a gene to replace improperly functioning gene through a vector. Its basic mechanics is administering the DNA to the patient. Introduce the DNA to the diseased cell by a genetically engineered virus and express a protein. This can be done by injecting it to the bloodstream. The therapeutic genes are hoped to genetically alter the cells for normal functioning.