Google backs a bid to use CRISPR to prevent heart disease - MIT Technology Review - 0 views
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Ever wonder why some fortunate people eat chips, don’t exercise, and still don’t get clogged arteries? It could be because they’ve got lucky genes.
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Now Alphabet (Google’s parent company) is bankrolling a startup company that plans to use gene editing to spread fortunate DNA variations with “one-time” injections of the gene-editing tool CRISPR.
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Right now, to avoid heart disease you can pop statin pills, change your diet, and jump on an exercise bike. But people have a hard time sticking with it. The scientists at Verve think if they can install lucky genes in your body, you may not have to. Initially, Kathiresan says, the gene-editing treatment could be used on adults who have actually had a heart attack and want to avoid a second one.
