A New Nanomachine Shows Potential for Light-Selective Gene Therapy

November 26, 2014

(Medical Xpress) – Gene therapy has great potential to treat intractable diseases such as cancer, arterial sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease. Successful gene therapy requires a gene vector that can deliver the therapeutic gene selectively to the target site. However, the concern is that conventional gene vectors can cause non-selective transfection to normal organs, whereby genetic material infiltrates healthy cells and leads to unfavorable side effects. Now, Nobuhiro Nishiyama and Takahiro Nomoto from Tokyo Institute of Technology, together with Kazunori Kataoka from the University of Tokyo, have developed a novel light-responsive nanomachine as a new type of gene vector.