Word: virality
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...gene therapy, most of the current "smart bombs," as in the case of Ashanthi DeSilva, are viruses, which by their nature invade cells and deposit their genetic material into the cell nucleus. Researchers have learned how to strip the viruses of their reproductive genes, insert into the viral DNA the beneficial gene they want to deliver, and then let the virus infect a patient's cells. The virus inserts its own now harmless genes, as well as the beneficial one, into the cellular DNA. If all goes well and the gene "expresses" itself, the cell begins producing the needed protein...
...place, the new genes sometimes fail to express themselves. "There are still a few walls to get over," Anderson concedes. He points out that in the initial trial, viruses used for cystic fibrosis, for example, produced an inflammatory response: "So the trials were halted, and another generation of viral vectors was developed. Now we're going to restart the clinical trials with these new-generation vectors," which he thinks will...
Another problem is getting viral vectors into bone-marrow stem cells, from which all of the blood's white cells are descended. Even when the rare stem cells are found, inserting genes into them is difficult because they divide infrequently, and the vectors used in gene therapy insert genes only into cells that are dividing. Had Anderson's group been able to use stem cells in the landmark therapy with little Ashanthi DeSilva, for example, follow-up treatments would not have been necessary. Endowed with the normal gene, the marrow stem cells would have produced a continuing supply...
...Mary's Abbey in Buckfast, German-born Brother Adam crossbred various bee stocks to produce the celebrated "Buckfast bee," a gentle, disease-resistant, prolific honey-producer. In 1991 the U.S. Department of Agriculture imported Buckfast queens to replace American bee populations killed by a viral epidemic...
...patients. Not everyone responded or could even tolerate the combination of powerful drugs. But in a number of cases, the cocktail forced the disease into remission. Doctors watched in amazement as their patients' blood tests showed a precipitous drop in the amount of HIV. "We have seen patients whose viral load has gone below our ability to find it," says Dr. Paul Volberding of San Francisco General Hospital. "The question is, Can we keep it that low, and what will happen to the body with that kind of treatment?" There's the real possibility that the therapy will prove...