Should deadly viruses be used to treat cystic fibrosis?
Regulators in the US could soon be asked to approve a human trial of gene therapy for cystic fibrosis that uses a hybrid of the HIV and Ebola viruses. Tests on monkeys show the hybrid virus delivers genes to the lungs far more efficiently than any other method developed so far. And while the idea of combining two killer viruses sounds horrifying, the risks should be low. Despite much effort, no one has managed to develop an effective form of gene therapy to treat the lung problems of people with cystic fibrosis. The condition is caused by a mutation in the CFTR gene, and one of the problems in developing a treatment is getting a working version of CFTR into a high enough proportion of cells to restore normal lung function. While HIV is good at adding genes to cells’ genomes, it does not target lung epithelial cells. Ebola binds strongly to these cells, so Gary Kobinger at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia tried adding a surface protein from Ebola to HIV. Initial tests on m
Regulators in the US could soon be asked to approve a human trial of gene therapy for cystic fibrosis that uses a hybrid of the HIV and Ebola viruses. Tests on monkeys show the hybrid virus delivers genes to the lungs far more efficiently than any other method developed so far. And while the idea of combining two killer viruses sounds horrifying, the risks should be low.Despite much effort, no one has managed to develop an effective form of gene therapy to treat the lung problems of people with cystic fibrosis. The condition is caused by a mutation in the CFTR gene, and one of the problems in developing a treatment is getting a working version of CFTR into a high enough proportion of cells to restore normal lung function.While HIV is good at adding genes to cells’ genomes, it does not target lung epithelial cells. Ebola binds strongly to these cells, so Gary Kobinger at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia tried adding a surface protein from Ebola to HIV. Initial tests on mic
