Modified cells ease MD in mice
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Stem cells taken from Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients and genetically modified eased symptoms of the disease in mice, strengthening their muscles and allowing them to run longer on a treadmill, researchers reported Wednesday in the journal Cell Stem Cell.
The patients have a nonfunctional form of a protein called dystrophin. Researchers modified the muscle cells from the patients to produce a shortened but still effective form of dystrophin. Injected into the mice’s bloodstreams, the cells migrated to the site of damaged muscles and were incorporated into muscle tissues.
