Genetic modification could protect soldiers from chemical weapons
By Jocelyn KaiserJan. 22, 2020 , 2:00 PM
Despite international bans, some countries, such as Syria, use deadly nerve agents against enemy soldiers and civilians. Existing treatments for these chemical weapon attacks must be given quickly and don’t always prevent convulsions or brain damage. Now, U.S. Army researchers have created a gene therapy that allows mice to make their own nerve agent–busting proteins, providing protection against the toxicants for months.
The strategy could theoretically be adopted for human soldiers, but it would have risks. A person could develop a harmful immune response to the introduced protein, for example. “There are a number of pros and cons,†says biochemist Moshe Goldsmith of the Weizmann Institute of Science, who was not involved with the research.
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/01/genetic-modification-could-protect-soldiers-chemical-weapons
