Researchers report some success in using a gene therapy
technique to treat one form of congenital blindness. Two teams
of scientists have used modified viruses injected into the eye
to partially restore vision to people suffering from Leber
congenital amaurosis, or LCA, a congenital illness that results
in the degradation of the retina. People with LCA slowly lose
all vision, and typically are completely blind by their 20s or
30s. The modified virus used in the therapy carries a
replacement gene to the retina, allowing it to produce a missing
protein responsible for the disease. In this segment, Ira talks
with one of the authors of one report on the research, which was
published this week in two studies in the New England Journal of
Medicine. Produced by Annette Heist, Senior Producer