Danielle Gerhard, PhD | Mar 22, 2024 | 10+ min read
With the help of directed evolution, scientists inch closer to developing viral vectors that can cross the human blood-brain barrier to deliver gene therapy.
Clinical trials that target human endogenous retroviruses to treat multiple sclerosis, ALS, and other ailments are underway, but many questions remain about how these sequences may disrupt our biology.
Early reports that Omicron causes less-severe disease than Delta seem to be borne out, but it’s not yet clear to what extent that’s due to the variant itself versus the populations it’s infecting.
Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology will treat the first patient in its clinical trial testing an induced pluripotent stem cell-based treatment for age-related macular degeneration.
Working with a virus that infects bacteria, the Stanford University biochemist and developmental biologist helped to develop a way to stitch DNA together, a discovery that gave rise to genetic engineering.