Scientists launch company to develop the therapeutic potential of gene-snipping enzymes Image: Kent Dayton Instead of taking prescription pills to treat their ailments, patients may one day opt for genetic 'surgery' using an innovative gene-editing technology to snip out harmful mutations and swap in healthy DNA. The system, called CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats), has exploded in popularity in the past year, with genetic engineers, neuroscientists and even plant biologists viewing it as a highly efficient and precise research tool. Now, the gene-editing system has spun out a biotechnology company that is attracting attention from investors as well. Editas Medicine, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, announced its launch on 25 November with an initial $43 million venture capital investment. The company, founded by five leading CRISPR researchers, aims to develop therapies that directly modify disease-related genes. "This is a platform that could have a profound impact on a variety of genetic disorders," says interim president Kevin Bitterman, a venture capitalist at Polaris Partners in Waltham, Massachusetts, which is one of Editas' backers. The nicest cut CRISPR piggybacks on an immune strategy that bacteria use to detect and chop up foreign DNA. The DNA-cutting enzyme Cas9 finds its target with … Continue reading →

See Inside Image: Marek Haiduk We rely on trillions of bacteria, fungi, archaea and viruses in our mouth, on our skin and in our gut to get through the day and to stay healthy. Scientists had no way to study most of these microbes, which do not seem to want to grow in laboratory cultures. Rapidly improving, low-cost genetic-sequencing technologies are finally making it possible, however. By working with our microbes instead of against them, scientists are coming up with intriguing approaches to tackling persistent diseases and improving our overall health. A few years ago scientists could only dream of studying large communities of microorganisms, but now such experiments are manageable and affordable, says David Relman, a professor at the Stanford University School of Medicine. This new field of metagenomics is giving scientists profiles of what microbe populations look like in the gut of people who are healthyand in the gut of people who have various conditions and diseases. Armed with these data, scientists are poised to explore the possibility of manipulating the balance of our microbiota as treatments for obesity, inflammatory bowel disease and many other common and uncommon ailments. For example, researchers have profiled the populations of organisms … Continue reading →

A noninvasive screening method could provide expectant parents with unprecedented and comprehensive fetal genetic data, but it also presents new ethical quandaries Image: Thinkstock/iStock Todays genetic technologies are not yet a crystal ball for seeing a childs future, but doctors are closer than ever to routinely glimpsing the full genetic blueprints of a fetus just months after sperm meets egg. That genomic reconstruction would reveal future disease risk and genetic traits even as early as the first trimester of pregnancy. Fetal screening could theoretically detect every hint of disease-associated mutations or disease-carrier status in a fetuss genomesometimes outpacing geneticists knowledge of how to interpret such information. It could also reveal nonmedical markers for eye color or athletic prowess. Advances in fetal cell research, coupled with the ever-dropping price of whole genome sequencing, presage the possibility of making such scans commonplace. Two years ago researchers devised two tests that could reveal a fetuss complete genetic profile. Separate research groups sequenced complete fetal genomes after gathering traces of fetal DNA in a blood sample from a pregnant woman or by taking that blood in combination with a drop of saliva from the father. Those largely noninvasive screenings could be carried out early … Continue reading →

(WFLA) When Judy Loar, 68, could not bear to walk any longer due to excruciating pain in both of her knees from degenerative joint disease, she did what most people in her condition do, she went in for a surgical knee replacement. After being released, Loar found out her knee cap had been set incorrectly. Going through surgery again to fix her other knee was not an option, so Loar started researching other alternatives to ease the agony of bone-on-bone friction caused by her condition. "I really did my research, because I knew I could go through another major surgery," said Loar who became a patient of Dr. Dennis Lox. Dr. Lox is the founder and medical director of Tampa-based Florida Spine and Sports Medicine Center, and one of the world's leading doctors specializing in using stem cell therapy as an alternative to successfully treat debilitating injuries or conditions. Loar describes the procedure as painless, with no down time. Read More: http://bit.ly/1awatpY Go here to see the original: More Local News … Continue reading →

San Jose, California (PRWEB) January 20, 2014 Follow us on LinkedIn Pharmaceutical industry represents one of the early beneficiaries of advancements in nanotechnology. Nanotechnology holds the potential to dramatically alter the fields of drug delivery, drug discovery, in vivo imaging, in vitro diagnostics, tissue engineering and implants. Of all the areas of nanomedicine, drug delivery remains the most researched and commercialized areas for nanotechnology in medicine. Nanoscale delivery systems hold potential to reduce undesirable effects of medication while improving therapeutic efficacy. Advancements in this area is expected to result in re-investigation of molecules whose development was earlier shelved due to lower pharmaceutical activity but were known to be biologically active. Also, nanoscale delivery systems can help improve efficacy of certain drugs that are already on the market. Business interests in the application of nanotechnology is fast rising, driven by rising intensity in research work in this area and growing competition within the general drug delivery technologies. The pharmaceutical industry is witnessing increasing demand for novel drug delivery technologies, as companies seek to minimize drug side effects, reduce quantity of costly active therapeutic agents, and endeavor to differentiate their products from competition as well as from commoditization. In this regard, nano-milled/nano-sized/nano-crystallized … Continue reading →