CRISPR-edited immune cells for fighting cancer passed a safety test
Immune cells edited with CRISPR/Cas9 to fight cancer seem to be safe and long-lasting, a small safety test of the cells in three cancer patients at the University of Pennsylvania shows. All three had cancers that could not be controlled by other therapies. While the gene-edited immune cells didn’t cure their cancer, the cells stayed in the body up to nine months and didn’t cause any serious side effects, researchers report February 6 in Science. The result is an important milestone in the gene editor’s journey toward being used clinically (SN: 12/16/19). But the Phase I clinical trial — which measures safety, not effectiveness — also saw some errors made during editing, one concern with the technology (SN: 3/5/19). CRISPR/Cas9 is a two-part molecular tool for cutting DNA. One part, a snippet of genetic material called a guide RNA, leads the DNA-cutting enzyme Cas9 to specific spots in DNA where researchers want to make a change. In this case, the team altered three genes in immune cells...