he pigs who had not received gene therapy. This was a very important discovery because pigs hearts are the hearts most similar to human hearts.At the 42nd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Hematology many new findings in gene therapy were announced, as reported in Blood Weekly. (Henderson, CW, 2000) The first study had been done on immunodeficiencies. SCID (Severe Combined ImmunoDeficiency Conditions) conditions, are conditions in which people do not have many lymphocytes that they need to protect themselves against infections. In the trial four out of the five patients had lymphocytes 30 days after gene therapy, which then increased in number until they had reached the normal count for the patients age according to CW Henderson. The next study was done on an external treatment of Hemophilia A, a bleeding disorder in which there is a defect in the gene for blood clotting. Using a gene therapy system called Transkaryotic Therapy, a process in which cells are removed from the patient, cultured, and then genetically modified using an electrical pulse, they were able to increase this gene by a maximum of 4%. Henderson argues that the results of these trials suggest that gene therapy may one day be a useful treatment for hemophilia A....
