Question

If a person is born with a hereditary disease, can a corrective therapy be taken for such a disease?

Answer 1

Hereditary diseases are caused due to the inheritance of chromosomes that carry defective genes or even due to complete absence of a gene.

• Gene therapy can be used for correcting hereditary diseases.
• It involves replacement of a defective gene with its functional copy using retroviral vectors.
• It is an effective and permanent approach to treat a hereditary disease if performed at an embryonic stage.