An "intelligent" molecule that stimulates genes only
where appropriate
(July 8, 2015)
Certain genetic diseases arise from a deficit of specific genes. An
enzyme that amplifies gene transcription could be a viable therapy in these
cases, as long as genes are not stimulated to work on the wrong part of the body.
SISSA scientists have created synthetic "intelligent" enzymes which are
able to differentiate between active and inactive genes and selectively stimulate
the former ones.
Everycell in the body (excepting gametes) contains the
complete DNA of the individual it belongs to. Even so, a neuron in the brain differs completely from a liver cell-they perform specific
functions and synthesize proteins in a completely different way. The reason for
this is that within the DNA of each cell, some genes are either "on" or
"off" depending on the requirements of the specific tissue they belong
to. This means that when we want to stimulate genes to work harder to fight a genetic
disease, for example, we need to targe the appropriate tissue and not the entire
body (doing so could cause serious damage ), which is anything but simple.