Gene Theraphy Flashcards
is when DNA is introduced into a patient to treat a genetic disease
Gene therapy
when was the Gene therapy technique was developed?
1972
Two different types
of gene therapy
Somatic and Germline gene therapy
transfer of a section of DNA to any cell of the body that doesn’t produce sperm or eggs. Effects of gene therapy will not be passed onto the patient’s children.
Somatic gene therapy
transfer of a section of DNA to cells that produce eggs or sperm. Effects of gene therapy will be passed onto the patient’s children and subsequent generations.
Germline Gene Therapy
-This is used to treat diseases caused by a mutation that stops a gene from producing a functioning product, such as a protein.
-This therapy adds DNA containing a functional version of the lost gene back into the cell.
-The new gene produces a functioning product at sufficient levels to replace the protein that was originally missing.
-This is only successful if the effects of the disease are reversible or have not resulted in lasting damage to the body.
Gene augmentation therapy
Suitable for the treatment of infectious diseases, cancer and inherited disease caused by inappropriate gene activity.
The aim is to introduce a gene whose product either:
-inhibits the expression of another gene.
-interferes with the activity of the product of another gene.
The basis of this therapy is to eliminate the activity of a gene that encourages the growth of disease-related
cells.
Gene inhibition therapy
-Suitable for diseases such as cancer that can be treated by destroying certain groups of cells.
-The aim is to insert DNA into a diseased cell that causes that cell to die.
-It is essential with this method that the inserted DNA is targeted appropriately to avoid the death of cells that are functioning normally.
Killing of specific cells
are mother cells that have the potential to become any type of cell in the body.
Stem cells
are derived from a four-or-five-day old human embryo that is in the blastocyst phase of development. The embryos are usually extras that have been created in IVF (in vitro fertilization) clinics where several eggs are fertilized in a tube then implanted into a woman.
embryonic stem cells
They remain in a non-dividing state for years until activated by disease or tissue injury. These stem cells can divide or self-renew indefinitely, enabling them to generate a range of cell types from the originating organ or even regenerate the entire original organ. It is generally thought that adult or somatic stem cells are limited in their ability to differentiate based on their tissue of origin, but there is some evidence to suggest that they can differentiate to become other cell types.
somatic stem cells
