A Novel Method for Potentially Restoring Sight
An interesting technology demonstration noted at the Technology Review:: "Viruses can deliver light-sensitive proteins to specific cells in the retinas of blind mice, allowing rudimentary vision, according to new research. ... The new light-sensitive proteins were active for the length of the study, about 10 months, suggesting the treatment would work long-term. In addition, the therapy appeared safe; the proteins, which were derived from algae, remained within the eye, and they did not trigger inflammation. ... In my opinion, the biggest step forward in this paper is the use of viral delivery techniques, the same delivery techniques that would have to be used should the technique move on into human treatment. ... Recent gene-therapy studies, which used similar viruses to deliver different proteins, have shown preliminary success in treating a rare genetic form of blindness in patients.But the current approach could be applied to a much broader group of people because it could restore light-sensitivity to the retina regardless of the cause of degeneration. .. [Researchers] used a specially designed virus to deliver numerous copies of the gene that makes a protein called channelrhodopsin to the eye. The protein forms a channel that sits on a cell's membrane and opens when exposed to light. Positively charged ions then rush into the cell, triggering an electrical message that is transferred to other cells in the retina. The gene was modified so that it became active only in specific retinal cells called bipolar cells. In a healthy eye, these cells are activated when adjacent photoreceptor cells detect light. The researchers hope that making the bipolar cells directly responsive to light in an eye stricken by retinal degenerative diseases, such as retinitis pigmentosa or macular degeneration, could enable the altered cells to replace photoreceptors that have died off. "