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Drawing from the GENE POOL

American Fitness, Sept, 2000

A new day is dawning for the treatment of sports injuries. Within a decade, gene therapy may replace traditional treatments such as surgery, casts and lengthy rehabilitation.

"We're using basic scientific research to develop new orthopedic therapies that use genes, stem cells and tissue engineering to create improved healing in sports injuries of all kinds," says Johnny Huard, Ph.D. "Our research shows that by adding gene therapy to the treatment program, muscles heal with less scar tissue, creating a near complete recovery of the muscle."

In gene therapy, orthopedic surgeons harvest cells from a patient, modify them and return them to a particular area of the body. Once the gene is in place, it produces a response that stimulates the body's inherent healing process.

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The development of transferring genes into cells is creating new options for healing musculoskeletal tissues like muscles, ligaments and cartilage. Gene therapy also has the potential to revolutionize the treatment of bone loss problems related to hip and knee replacements, non-healing fractures and spinal fusion.

"The more we understand about the biology of bone formation, cartilage repair and tendon healing, the more we will be able to develop the appropriate tissue engineering and gene therapy strategies to treat specific injuries," says Jay Lieberman, M.D.

Drawing from the GENE POOL

American Fitness, Sept, 2000

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