Other than rejection of the organ, one of the most common transplant complications is infection. Doctors have to strike a balance when prescribing immunosuppressive drugs: too low a dose can lead to rejection, while too much can make a patient vulnerable to infection. Immunosuppressants are powerful drugs that can cause a range of side effects, … Read more
That has led researchers to genetically alter pigs in an attempt to make their organs a better match. The biotech company that bred the pig for the Penn study, eGenesis of Cambridge, Massaschetts, is aiming to do that with gene editing. Scientists at the company used Crispr to make a total of 69 genetic edits … Read more
“This is a terrible disease,” says Samarth Kulkarni, president and CEO of Crispr Therapeutics. “Every day feels like a big burden. Patients have this constant specter of mortality hanging over them.” The culprit is abnormal hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen through the body. The problem arises from a mutation in the HBB gene. Everyone … Read more
