In vivo genome editing improves muscle function in a mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy
Christopher E. Nelson, Chady H. Hakim, David G. Ousterout, Pratiksha I. Thakore, Eirik A. Moreb, Ruth M. Castellanos Rivera, Sarina Madhavan, Xiufang Pan, F. Ann Ran, Winston X. Yan, Aravind Asokan, Feng Zhang, Dongsheng Duan, Charles A. Gersbach- Multidisciplinary
Editing can help build stronger muscles
Much of the controversy surrounding the gene-editing technology called CRISPR/Cas9 centers on the ethics of germline editing of human embryos to correct disease-causing mutations. For certain disorders such as muscular dystrophy, it may be possible to achieve therapeutic benefit by editing the faulty gene in somatic cells. In proof-of-concept studies, Long et al. , Nelson et al. , and Tabebordbar et al. used adeno-associated virus-9 to deliver the CRISPR/Cas9 gene-editing system to young mice with a mutation in the gene coding for dystrophin, a muscle protein deficient in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Gene editing partially restored dystrophin protein expression in skeletal and cardiac muscle and improved skeletal muscle function.
Science
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