The fourth article in a series of six on genetic engineering biotechnology
4 - Gene Therapy and other wonders
Robert Anderson BSc(Hons) PhD
4 February 1942 to 5 December 2008
Apart from the manufacture of cheap vaccines, gene therapy was the light at the end of the tunnel for medical bio-technology … until, that is, the bubble began to burst.
Deaths are coming to light as the failure of gene therapy becomes apparent. Experts estimate that hundreds of patients in gene-therapy trials have died, but the deaths have mostly been blamed on the patients’ underlying conditions rather than the therapy itself. Again, we have this inability to accept that the basic scientific principles involved are flawed. It is the ‘don’t look don’t see’ syndrome. Professor Stuart Newman of the New York Medical College has said: “Because of the commercialisation of this research there really is an incentive to keep secret anything that reflects badly on the progress of the work.”
After the death of his son, Paul Gelsinger recently told the US Congress, “Information I was given was not true.” His son was undergoing gene therapy as part of a clinical trail for a liver disease. This discovery led to the shutting down of further trials until more information is available.
To quote Dr Richard Nicholson, from The Bulletin of Medical Ethics: “Ten years ago, we were being told that gene therapy was the greatest thing since sliced bread. Today, its record stands at:
Cures: nil, Deaths: 5, Major adverse effects: at least a thousand.”
William Frist, Chairman of the US Senate Committee on Public Health, has said: “I’m concerned that there are significant gaps in the oversight and monitoring of gene therapy trials.” The National Institutes of Health (NIH) received 652 previously unreported serious adverse effects which Frist called “inexcusable.” One of the scientists involved is even said to have had financial interests in the therapy.
So what is the problem? In the earlier articles, we looked at how we use a virus to break into a plant cell and carry the required gene with it. In gene therapy, we again rely on the virus. The theory has it that a de-activated cold virus or adenovirus is used to carry the gene into the human body. Professor David Kerr, Consultant Oncologist, has said: “The viruses have been neutered - we snip out the part of their genetic code which allows them to replicate.” So what could be safer than that, they are now harmless. Or are they?
Many scientists who are prepared to “look”, fear that if one of these modified viruses were to meet a natural or wild virus, a lethal combination could take place. It has not happened so far is usually the answer, but it is a very real possibility. The result, in the case of a virus, could be devastating.
Indeed, virus outbreaks are increasing worldwide. Viruses have an amazing ability to survive and replicate. Nature also generally makes them species specific. In other words, they only attack the host they were intended for. By using viruses in biotechnology we are interfering in a very delicate balance and have to be very sure of what we are doing.
Today, we could be incapacitated for a few days by flu, but in 1918 a particularly dangerous strain killed twenty percent of the population in a few months. This is as many people – over 20 million - as were killed in World War 1. Scientists are still trying to understand this infection to improve our prospects for the future (EcoWatch/London Radio Service 5:05 www.lrs.co.uk).
Some scientists claim that in five million years human DNA has evolved less than two percent. In this century, we are starting to radically alter plant and animal DNA, and that of bacteria and viruses. Nature survives by evolution, not revolution.
Gene therapy is not too far removed from another exciting genetic biotech money spinner – xenotransplantation, using animal organs for humans. Xenotransplantation is seen as a solution to a chronic shortage of donor organs worldwide. Several thousand people are awaiting liver and heart transplants in the UK alone. Genetic engineering can also be used to reduce the body’s natural inclination to reject these organs.
A 35-year-old man who was given a baboon’s liver died because a virus, specific to baboons, crossed the species barrier and infected him. Just as GE encourages horizontal gene transfer, using animal organs invites cross species infection. Most animals carry viruses that are specific to them and even the most rigorous screening methods cannot guarantee safety.
In fact, baboons are a good example. There are at least two viruses specific to baboons that are retroviruses; in other words, the same kind that has given rise to AIDS. These organisms could spread to many victims before their deadly nature becomes apparent. Because of the risk of unknown infections - which could be far more devastating on humans than animals - the US authorities have called a halt to xenotransplants.
Another example of the dangers of cross-species infection occurred recently in Malaysia. On this occasion, it was a virulent mosquito-born virus, typically transmitted to humans via a pig. Called Japanese encephalitis, it kills up to 10 000 Asians each year. What was more disturbing was that Malaysia’s Ministry of Health found people infected with a new and more virulent strain, similar to the Hendra virus first isolated in Australia in 1994. The Malaysian Government refused media access and maintained a cloak of secrecy. Why? Because the doctors can do nothing, but watch victims die.
The episode in Malaysia is by no means an isolated case. Viral and bacterial outbreaks - including previously unknown strains - are increasing worldwide. Over the past ten years, the US Centres for Disease Control (CDC) has identified more than 50 new viruses causing human illness. Brian Mahy, the CDC Director, made the ominous comment that: “There is the potential for the emergence of a new virus against which we have no resistance and for which there would be no vaccine.” Horrifying? No worries; the biotechnology juggernaut continues to roll inexorably on.
The outbreak of bird flu in Hong Kong was bad enough, but an incident in May 1997 gave the local hospital cause for grave concern. A three-year-old boy was admitted suffering from a fatal respiratory illness. Dr Wilina Lim, chief virologist with the Hong Kong Department of Health, was a careful operative. She sent samples taken from the boy to the UK and to Jan De Jong, a virologist at the Dutch National Institute of Health for recognition. A month later De Jong flew to Hong Kong. The virus which the boy had contracted was dangerous, known as “H5”. It is not normally passed to humans, but in this case it had jumped species to infect the infant.
A team of investigators, working with health department officials, conducted scores of interviews and took hundreds of blood samples in an effort to find the source of infection. Why all the fuss? Renowned virologists realised that if the common-flu virus came into contact with the avian or chicken-flu virus, the combination would give rise to a pathogen of almost inconceivable lethality. In short, we would have a pandemic like that of 1918 when more than 20 million died. The difference is that, whereas it took four months to travel the globe in 1918, now it could take less than four days. I leave it to you, reader, to decide if “neutered viruses” are safe tools for genetic engineering applications.
The next article in this series will look at ethical issues.
Robert Anderson BSc(Hons) PhD
Robert Anderson was a Quaker, teacher and writer. He was a Trustee of Physicians and Scientists for Global Responsibility (www.psgr.org.nz), a member of Amnesty International, a Theosophist, and a campaigner for peace and disarmament. He believed everyone has the right to equality and respect, freedom of speech and religion He lectured on many subjects to meet the public's right to be independently informed on issues of science, the environment and social justice. He was passionate about making this world a better place for the generations to come. He authored eleven books and regularly wrote for a number of periodicals.
Enquiries for books written by Robert Anderson should be addressed to naturesstar@xtra.co.nz
For further information see:
GE Free New Zealand in food and environment www.gefree.org.nz/
GE Free Northland in food and environment http://web.gefreenorthland.org.nz/
Physicians and Scientists for Global Responsibility www.psgr.org.nz
Sustainability Council of New Zealand http://www.sustainabilitynz.org/
The Soil & Health Association / Organic New Zealand http://organicnz.org.nz/
Enquiries about books written by Robert Anderson should be addressed to connectedbooks@clear.net.nz