A report in last week's New England Journal of Medicine shows that children treated by gene therapy at the Necker Hospital for Sick Children in Paris, France, are still living normal lives after more than two years. Four boys were successfully treated in the French study, all having the X-linked...
Research published in the journal Fertility and Sterility suggests that the use of acupuncture before and during IVF treatment may improve the chances of success. Acupuncture is a traditional Chinese medical practice that is believed to stimulate the flow of energy throughout the body. The scientists, from the Christian-Lauritzen-Institut in...
Researchers in the US have shown, in a small study, that stem cell transplants may help sufferers of multiple sclerosis (MS), a degenerative disease affecting the central nervous system. The study showed that transplants of stem cells appeared to halt the deterioration of MS patients. The results of the research...
Both sides in the US cloning debate are said to be considering amendments to two bills before the Senate, in order to sway some of the lawmakers who are as yet undecided how to vote. A bill sponsored by Republican Senator Sam Brownback would ban all forms of cloning. Another...
Members of HUGO, the Human Genome Organisation, have spoken out against human reproductive cloning at an international scientific meeting in China. They say that the practice would have unknown long-term effects and raises 'deep concerns over moral issues'. The chair of HUGO's international ethics committee, Bartha-Maria Knoppers, said 'I don't...
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Success stories in gene therapy
by Dr Jess Buxton
After over a decade of largely unsuccessful clinical trials, the persistence of gene therapy researchers is finally beginning to pay off. Two weeks ago came news of the remarkable recovery made by Rhys Evans, the UK toddler who underwent gene therapy to treat an inherited immune system disorder. The scientists...