IN A dramatic demonstration of the power of gene therapy, dogs with a rare
inherited form of blindness have had their sight restored. The work could be an
important step towards the treatment of eye diseases in humans.
“It is the sort of result, that if you are lucky, you see once in your
career,” says Jean Bennett of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.
“We are really excited.”
The dogs in the study had a naturally occurring eye disease called Leber
congenital amaurosis (LCA), which causes the light-sensing tissue of the retina
to malfunction and degrade. LCA also occurs…
