GENE THERAPY Definition & Meaning

gene therapy

noun

Medicine/Medical.

the application of genetic engineering to the transplantation of genes into human cells in order to cure a disease caused by a genetic defect, as a missing enzyme.

gene therapy

noun

the replacement or alteration of defective genes in order to prevent the occurrence of such inherited diseases as haemophilia. Effected by genetic engineering techniques, it is still at the experimental stage

gene therapy

The treatment of a disorder or disease, especially one caused by the inheritance of a defective gene, by replacing defective genes with healthy ones through genetic engineering.

gene therapy

A promising technology that involves replacing a defective gene in the body with a healthy one. This can be done by removing cells from the body, using genetic engineering techniques to change defective sequences in the DNA, and then reinserting the cells. This technique has been carried out successfully, for example, on bone marrow cells, in which defective cells were successfully replaced with healthy, genetically engineered cells. Scientists hope to find an agent, such as a therapeutic virus, that will be able to correct defective DNA in situ. (See cloning vector.)

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of gene therapy¹

First recorded in 1970–75

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

A boy with an ultra-rare immune disease which can carry a "death sentence" is starting to live a normal life after taking part in a groundbreaking gene therapy trial.

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The new gene therapy works by modifying the patient's own cells to help them create the missing protein needed to help the body fight infection.

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Prof Booth said the success of the trial opens doors for gene therapy to be used in a number of conditions, including cancer and muscular dystrophy.

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He could not have the operation before the gene therapy.

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The £2.8m treatment is a gene therapy that can halt the progress of MLD and allow a child to go on to live a full and healthy life, but only if it is used before the child is symptomatic.

From

genet genethliac

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