Gene Therapy in Sports

Taken from http://www.popsci.com/

gene therapy

Dreams of Olympic glory could make athletes risk their lives on an experimental procedure

Steroids seem so last-decade, now that gene therapy has caught the eye of athletes looking for a competitive edge. But scientists warn that gene therapy still represents a high-risk, experimental practice even within medicine, and that athletes could endanger their lives by giving it a try.

Gene therapy has shown promise in a few treatments by helping swap out defective genes or changing the degree to which genes turn on and off. For instance, it has helped establish some immune system function in so-called “bubble children.” But researchers have become extra cautious with gene therapy ever since the death of 18-year-old Jesse Gelsinger during a 1999 research trial.

Unsurprisingly, the practice has been banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency that regulates sports. But experts writing in the journal Science fear that gene therapy may still tempt athletes eager to duck the stringent drug testing at events such as the upcoming Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

A German coach and a Chinese lab have already been flagged for trying to obtain gene delivery treatments that boost erythropoietin (EPO) production. EPO leads to a surge in red blood cells that carry oxygen in the human body, and has become somewhat of an item among endurance sports athletes. Doping tests can still pick up on signs of the gene therapy if they are done soon enough.

Tags: Defective Genes, Endurance Sports, Erythropoietin Epo, Immune System Function, Jesse Gelsinger, Red Blood Cells