Gene therapy may reverse age-related eye conditions

Later this year, a small group of people with a rare eye condition will receive a new injection aimed at reversing some effects of aging. The condition is called nonarteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, or NAION. It can lead to sudden blindness by blocking blood flow to the optic nerve. Unfortunately, there are currently no treatments available for this condition. Scientists are hopeful that this new gene therapy will change that. Instead of focusing on the specific genetic causes of NAION, the therapy seeks to restore the optic nerve cells to a healthier state before the disease set in. This could be compared to pressing a biological "rewind button" on those cells. Some scientists think this idea is highly ambitious and may not succeed, while others believe it is unlikely to work. Regardless, it represents an exciting and controversial area of research aimed at addressing the effects of aging. If successful, this treatment could also help with more common age-related eye problems like glaucoma, as well as other chronic diseases such as dementia, arthritis, and heart disease. This is just one of many new approaches being explored to reverse the impacts of aging at a cellular level.