A patent has been issued for a pill that would deliver genes to induce the production of insulin in people with diabetes, a development that also could pave the way for treating hemophilia, anemia and other illnesses.
The patent was issued Tuesday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to the University of California, San Francisco. Researchers at UCSF demonstrated that raw DNA could be taken orally and would find its way into cells and prompt them to express proteins such as insulin.
Research on the technique began five years ago with experiments on laboratory rats. The research team formed a company, Genteric, three years ago to pursue practical applications of the pill.
Genteric has an exclusive license agreement with the university to use the
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.