Gene editing to treat and prevent diseases
CRISPR gene editing allows researchers to change DNA, including repairing mistakes. Although it’s a relatively new technology, it has already had a substantial impact on medicine and earned Nobel Prize in Chemistry its inventors. The technology has been tested as a treatment for rare blood disorders, cancers, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s disease, with many more on the horizon. But CRISPR’s potential isn’t limited to its ability to treat diseases; it may also be able to prevent them from ever developing. It may also be used to prevent inherited diseases as well as certain cancers, neurodegenerative diseases, or immune disorders that are caused to single gene mutation.
