No, CRISPR Is Not Going To ‘Cure’ Heart Disease

No, CRISPR gene editing technology is not going to “cure” heart disease. But a New York Times story by Gina Kolata on an extremely early study in animals prominently plays up just this extremely unlikely claim.

The Times story is based on a press release issued by Verve Therapeutics, a new biotechnology company founded by Sekar Kathiresan, an influential cardiologist and genomic researcher associated with the Broad Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Harvard. Kathiresan and colleagues used a novel CRISPR base editing technique to knock out either the PCSK9 or ANGPTL3 genes in 14 monkeys. They reported that LDL and triglyceride levels dropped dramatically two weeks after receiving the  novel treatment.

The Times headline raises immediate concerns:

“Cure”? “Succeeds”?

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