Question

Which of the following given statements is incorrect for gene therapy?

• A. It is the treatment of diseases caused by genetic defect
• B. Somatic gene therapy is not heritable
• C. It is 100 percent safe technique
• D. Germline gene therapy is heritable

Answer 1

The correct option is C It is 100 percent safe technique

Gene therapy is a treatment that consists of introducing a normal copy of defective genes into the patient's cells. Gene therapy has been attempted for many disorders, one of which is Adenosine deaminase (ADA) deficiency.
In germline gene therapy, DNA is inserted into the reproductive cells (eggs or sperm) of the human body. This therapy will correct the error in genes of the reproductive cells of an individual. This would be passed down to future generations. However, this is not possible in somatic gene therapy. Hence, somatic gene therapy is not inheritable while germline gene therapy is.

Gene therapy is not 100 percent safe. It has many safety concerns associated with it. The viral vectors used for gene transfer are effective but may cause infection or stimulate immune response in the host cell. Also, the gene must be inserted at a particular location without affecting the functioning of other genes. In the past, many cases of cancer erupted in patients who were treated with gene therapy.