I thought I would take a few minutes to talk about some of the recent scientific/medical advances I’ve heard about lately and thought were cool. I hope these come to fruition.
MGAT2: The Fat Gene?
I read a story today about a scientists discovering a gene, MGAT2, that controls how mice process fat. Flipping this switch causes mice fed a high-fat diet to weigh 40% less and have 50% less fat than the “normal mice.” I would have liked a bit more detail on their experiments, such as if their normal mice were a real control group, and what the duration of the experiment was.
But if scientists are able to apply this to humans, it could help to adapt our bodies to more foods. Personally, I’m all for scientific advancement, but I also think we should eat responsibly. I just don’t want to see this become an excuse for people to gorge on Big Macs three times a day.
Eliminating tooth decay
This is one I remembered reading about years ago, but I haven’t heard of any further advancements, which disappoints me. Our mouths contain a host of bacteria, among which is Streptococcus mutans. This is a bacteria that feeds on sugars, excreting lactic acid, and is a primary cause of tooth decay. But by genetically engineering a strain of Streptococcus mutans that doesn’t secrete lactic acid, they were able to stop tooth decay in the test rats, even when fed a high sugar diet.
HIV blocked by Delta 32 mutation could lead to cure
There is a particular genetic mutation called Delta 32 (inherited from both parents) which blocks the CCR5 receptor on cells. This receptor is what enables HIV to enter and infect cells. By blocking the receptor, the subject becomes functionally immune to HIV and AIDS.
This has been demonstrated in humans already in Berlin. In an astoundingly unfortunate double-whammy, a man contracted both HIV and Leukemia. The man needed a bone marrow transplant, and in doing so, they deliberately chose a donor with the Delta 32 mutation. The effect of this was that the patient gained this resistance to HIV, and subsequent testing showed no signs of the virus.
Bacteriophages
Bacteriophages are a set of viruses whose targets are not humans, but bacteria. Therefore they pose little threat to us. The FDA does not, however, recognize them as legitimate ways of treating bacterial infections, though testing overseas has shown great promise. One particular example given in the Popular Science article (linked below) is combating flesh-eating bacteria, which is usually treatable only by cutting out the infected area and performing skin grafts to close the now even larger wound. Or by amputation.
In particular, the former Soviet republic of Georgia has made some of the most important advances in phage therapy. They’ve engineered thousands of strains that are adept at killing particular target bacteria. Using a sample of the infection from the patient, they can mix a cocktail addressing all of the bacteria in the infection, which is then dribbled over the wound painlessly. In a few days, healing begins. In a few weeks, a wound that would have otherwise required surgery and skin grafts, or even amputation, is healed.
The FDA needs to come to their senses and realize that for new scientific advances, we cannot simply deny the potential benefits because the treatment doesn’t follow the arbitrary rules we’ve set for testing. We need to be flexible, and adjust the rules so that these treatments at least have a chance to be tested and prove themselves.
Link @ PopSci.com or PDF Mirror @ Bogrees.com
