As we pointed out in earlier 2030 Trend emails, CRISPR-Cas9 mediated gene therapies are poised to revolutionize medicine. Using the CRISPR system, researchers can precisely edit any target DNA locus – a feat that was not achievable using other gene editing tools. The possibility to edit a disease mutation to correct genetic errors creates opportunities for treating conditions that have long eluded the medical research community.
Researchers are developing CRISPR-Cas9 mediated therapies for a wide range of diseases, including inherited eye diseases, neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s disorders, and non-inherited diseases such as cancer and HIV. In fact, CRISPR human trials have already been planned for blood disorders such as sickle cell anemia and beta thalassemia.
Click the link below to learn about the background, successes so far, and what’s next for these 13 different diseases that could be defeated in the future using CRISPR:
- Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
- Sickle cell disease
- Beta thalassemia
- Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection
- Alzheimer’s disease
- Huntington’s disease
- Autism spectrum disorder
- Retinitis pigmentosa
- Specific (biallelic RPE65 mutation-associated) retinal dystrophy
- Leber congenital amaurosis
- Lung and Esophageal Cancers
- B-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia
- Cervical cancer