What are the disadvantages of human gene therapy?

This technique presents the following risks: Unwanted immune system reaction. Your body’s immune system may see the newly introduced viruses as intruders and attack them. This may cause inflammation and, in severe cases, organ failure.

What are the possible issues of gene therapy in society?

Related Stories. Disorders arising from one gene mutation are the most promising candidates for gene therapy but a lot of the most common disorders such as diabetes, heart disease and arthritis are caused by a combination of altered genes making them particularly difficult to treat.

Why would you disagree to be treated through gene therapy?

Three arguments sometimes raised against gene therapy are that it is technically too dangerous, that it discriminates or invites discrimination against persons with disabilities, and that it may be becoming increasingly irrelevant in some cases.

Why are there so few approved gene therapies?

However, gene therapy development for rare diseases is highly complex, time consuming and expensive. Moreover, the development process is stymied by limited access to tools and technologies, lack of standards across the field, and a one-disease-at-a-time approach to therapeutic development.

Why is gene therapy a controversial topic in medicine?

The idea of germline gene therapy is controversial. While it could spare future generations in a family from having a particular genetic disorder, it might affect the development of a fetus in unexpected ways or have long-term side effects that are not yet known.

Is it alright to use the gene therapy in the prenatal stage of development in babies?

For clinicians and parents, fetal gene therapy would give a third choice following prenatal diagnosis of inherited disease, where termination of pregnancy or acceptance of an affected child are currently the only options. Application of this therapy in the fetus must be safe, reliable and cost-effective.

What are the limitations of gene therapy?

Limitations of gene therapy. Human immune system prevents the invaders by attacking them. Thus the inserting genes may not be able to reach the target loci or lose their potential to perform appropriately.

Can gene therapy be passed to a person’s children?

This type of gene therapy cannot be passed to a person’s children. Gene therapy could be targeted to egg and sperm cells (germ cells), however, which would allow the inserted gene to be passed to future generations. This approach is known as germline gene therapy. The idea of germline gene therapy is controversial.

Why is germ line gene therapy not widely used?

Germ line gene therapy appears to be very effective and helpful in controlling diseases but due to many expected alarming consequences it has not got popularity in applied treatment. There are many ethical and technical reasons for which the germ line therapy has not been applied to humans on clinical trials.

What are the treatment options for genetic disorders?

• Preventive gene therapy: Preventive gene therapy involves repair of mutated gene by integration of some other functional gene in the genome prior to the impression of the disease in the individual.