Blind man s vision partially restored by light-activated gene therapy The patient was able to partially see with the treated eye, 40 years after he lost his vision. 24 May, 2021 15:32
A 58-year-old blind man has been able to experience partial recovery of vision in one eye with the help of a breakthrough treatment using genetic engineering and light-activated therapy.
The patient, who is based in France, was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa (RP), a neurodegenerative eye disease that affects the retina at the back of the eye and stops it from working, almost 40 years ago.
Several months after the treatment, he was was able to recognise, count, locate and touch different objects with the treated eye while wearing a pair of light-stimulating goggles.
Sahel et al, Nature Medicine and StreetLab/Institut de la Vision
A man who is blind has had glimmers of vision restored thanks to a high-tech treatment using optogenetics, which involves genetically altering nerve cells so they respond to light.
French firm GenSight Biologics has published results showing that the first recipient of its treatment can recognise different objects in lab tests. “It’s exciting to see the first publication on human optogenetics,” says Ed Boyden at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston, a co-inventor of optogenetics.
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Optogenetics has become a widely used lab tool, because it allows precision control over brain cells by altering them so they fire in response to light. It has led to many discoveries about the brain when used in animals – but is thought to have limited medical potential for treating brain disorders in people, because getting light inside the head requires implanting a fibre optic cable.
Last modified on Tue 25 May 2021 00.08 EDT
A blind man has had his sight partly restored after a form of gene therapy that uses pulses of light to control the activity of nerve cells – the first successful demonstration of so-called optogenetic therapy in humans.
The 58-year-old man, from Brittany in northern France, was said to be “very excited” after regaining the ability to recognise, count, locate and touch different objects with the treated eye while wearing a pair of light-stimulating goggles, having lost his sight after being diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa almost 40 years ago.
The breakthrough marks an important step towards the more widespread use of optogenetics as a clinical treatment. It involves modifying nerve cells (neurons) so that they fire electrical signals when they’re exposed to certain wavelengths of light, equipping neuroscientists with the power to precisely control neuronal signalling within the brain and elsewhere.