From: Brett Paatsch (paatschb@ocean.com.au)
Date: Thu Jan 16 2003 - 02:43:20 MST
Damien wrote:
>
> Robert J. Bradbury:
>
> > With Worm Experiments, Scientists Turn Off Genes (AP)
> >
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/15/science/15WEB_WORM.html?pagewanted=print
>
> Waaaaiiitt a minute:
>
> < In the new method, British researchers added genetic
> material from a roundworm to bacteria. Then they fed the
> bioengineered bacteria to the worms. The worms' immune
> systems recognized the genetic material carried by bacteria
> as foreign and destroyed that sequence in their own genetic
> coding. In doing so, the worms rapidly turned themselves into
> knockout versions.>
>
> I do hope this doesn't mean that tailored xenotransplants will
> end up knocking out important genes in the patients.
Very safe bet it doesn't I reckon. Lots of devils left in the
details not covered by the article as linked. It certainly doesn't of
itself suggest xenos will knock out important genes.
Also recent work with stem cells in the thymus suggests that
we may be able to induce immunity and prevent the rejection
of xenos by training the immune system to see the foreign proteins
on the xenos as self. Early days yet but looks like both
developments are positive and almost certainly use very different
mechanisms.
Sorry I'm not giving much detail here, I haven't read, the
underlying Nature article. But there is still plenty of wiggle
room left imo.
I can find the stem cell article if anyone's interested although I
think Roberts probably already linked to it in a previous post.
He's that sort of guy ;)
Brett
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