Researches at Tufts University (my alma mater!) are working on a new way to deliver the “good” genes in gene therapy.
At this point, gene therapy is usually done by using a virus (or vector) as a carrier which then takes the good genes or proteins to the affected area (in this case, the retina) and fills in what the defective gene is lacking.
This is of course a simplified version of what they do, but I’m not a scientist.
The new method, called PEG-POD, would hopefully be safer and more effective and may even be usable as a simple IV injection in the future.