Scientists have developed a potential cure for cervical cancer and are on the verge of developing it to treat human patients.
If the cure proves to be effective in human trials, Australia will become the first country in the world to eliminate the deadly disease.
According to the scientists of the Griffith University in Queensland, they have made use of the gene-editing technology with the help of which they were able to target cancerous cells in mice.
As ABC reported, the results of the trial were flawless, whereas the mice treated with the revolutionary technology had a 100 % survival rate.
As Professor Nigel McMillan, lead researcher, explained, they injected the gene-editing tool that goes by the name of CRISPR-Cas9 into the test subjects’ bloodstream with the help of nanoparticles. The latter hunt down the gene E7, which is responsible for cancer, before cutting it in half.
“This is like adding a few extra letters into a word so the spell checker doesn’t recognize it anymore. The cancer must have this gene to produce, once edited, the cancer dies,” the professor explained in an interview.
“We looked for lots of markers, inflammation and damage, but they were perfectly fine, so this is very exciting.”
Following the fruitful results in the mice trial, researchers Luqman Jabair and Professor McMillan applied for a grant in order to gain funds to initiate human trials.
“There are still many steps to go through before we get to the clinic stage, but I think this really proves that gene editing is going to be proved to be useful,” McMillan added.
As the researchers confirmed, they hope to begin and conclude the human trials within the next five years.
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Replaced!