The extraordinary promise of gene editing

Science Weekly

The Guardian

Science

4.2 • 938 Ratings

🗓️ 22 May 2025

⏱️ 19 minutes

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Summary

Doctors in the US have become the first to treat a baby with a customised gene-editing therapy after diagnosing the child with a severe genetic disorder that kills about half of those affected in early infancy. Ian Sample explains to Madeleine Finlay how this new therapy works and how it paves the way for even more complex gene editing techniques. David Liu, a professor at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and the inventor of these therapies, also describes the barriers that could prevent them reaching patients, and how he thinks they can be overcome. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is The Guardian.
0:02.0	Finlay Christie here.
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1:32.6	In August 2024, a boy was born in Pennsylvania. His parents called him KJ. He was five weeks premature,
1:40.8	but it wasn't his early arrival that was the issue. Immediately, KJ didn't seem well. When he was picked up, his arms went stiff, and they shook as he was put back down.
1:46.7	Worried, doctors started to investigate.
1:49.8	Tests revealed something concerning and rare.
1:53.5	KJ's blood had abnormally high levels of ammonia.
1:57.6	Too much ammonia in the system is toxic,
2:06.6	and it indicated KJ was suffering from a life-threatening genetic condition.
	...

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