Gene Therapy for Retinitis Pigmentosa

Inherited degeneration of the retina such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP) causes blindness due to loss of photoreceptor cells. Restoring vision in RP might be possible with gene therapy. In a laboratory study in Oxford, a research team has shown how it might be possible to reverse blindness using gene therapy to reprogram cells at the back of the eye to become light sensitive.