World-first: therapy to make cells young again given to a person

Scientists are attempting to rejuvenate cells in the optic nerve (nerve fibres in red), which channels information from the retina to the brain. Credit: Thomas Deerinck, NCMIR/Science Photo Library Test time has arrived: the first person has been treated in a highly anticipated gene therapy trial that aims to coax aged cells to take on a younger identity. The clinical trial will test a novel approach that involves turning on three genes that seem to “partially reprogram” old cells, allowing them to behave as if they were young again. Some scientists argue that partial reprogramming could rejuvenate old organs . But this trial will test activation of the three genes as an approach for treating disease — in this case, a form of glaucoma, a disease that can cause blindness. The hope is that the proteins encoded by these genes will enable regeneration of neurons in the optic nerve, which connects the eye to the brain and can be damaged in people with glaucoma. These neurons do not normally regenerate in adults. The company sponsoring the trial, Life Biosciences in Boston, Massachusetts, announced on 9 June that it had treated its first participant. Is ageing a disease? The debate that could reshape medicine The stakes are high. The trial will test the safety of the reprogramming approach, which is a lingering concern for the field. …