GENE THEAPY AND CURE OF CANCER
WHY IN NEWS : Scientists in the UK testing a new form of cancer therapy, got success in a girl, Alyssia, with a form of cancer called Tcell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.
WHAT ARE T-CELLS ?
- T-cells which are a class of white blood cells to hunt down the threat to a body.
- In this Cancer, T-cells turn against the body and starts destroying body’s ability and immunity.
What is GENE therapy ?
- Gene therapy is a way to treat genetic diseases by correcting the source of the error in a patient’s DNA.
- Gene therapy techniques allow doctors to treat a disorder by altering a person’s genetic makeup instead of using drugs or surgery.
What is BASE EDITING?
- Base editing allows scientists to zoom to a precise part of the genetic code.
- After that they alter the molecular structure of just one base, converting it into another and changing the genetic instructions.
What are bases in DNA?
- Molecules called nucleotides, are opposite strands of the DNA double helix, that form chemical bonds with one another.
- These chemical bonds act like bridge between the two strands and help hold the two strands of DNA together.
- There are four nucleotides, or bases, in DNA: adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G), and thymine (T).
- They are the fundamental units of the genetic code.
- The information stored in the DNA is made up of these four chemical bases.
- The order of these bases determines the information available for building and maintaining an organism.
HOW IS BASE-EDITING BETTER THAN CRISPR?
- CRISPR gene editing introduces double -strand breaks while BASE EDITING avoids double-strand breaks thus avoiding errors.
- Base editors allow precise nucleotide substitutions in the DNA without having to break the DNA to force the cell machinery to repair it and in the process make mistakes, which is the main mechanism of CRISPR-Cas9.
IMPORTANCE OF TECHNOLOGY
- Base editing is even more precise gene editing technique than CRISPR and has lesser risks of side effects on the chromosomes.
- It reduces the negative effect on the target.
- Genetic manipulation is a “very fast-evolving area of technology in science” with “unseen huge potential” across a range of diseases and health implications.
Syllabus : Prelims + Mains; GS3 – Science and Technology
